Bloomberg Billionaires Index reports that the rebound in the cryptocurrency market this year has led to a significant increase in the net worth of cryptocurrency entrepreneurs.
Zhao Changpeng, the founder of Binance, has once again made it onto the billionaires list despite the turmoil surrounding the exchange. In November of this year, CZ and Binance reached a comprehensive settlement with the United States for violating US sanctions and anti-money laundering laws. They admitted to the charges and agreed to pay fines, allowing Binance to continue its operations.
While CZ personally agreed to pay a $50 million fine and stepped down as CEO, he still retains ownership of Binance shares. According to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, his assets have increased by $23.6 billion this year, which is more than five times the $4.3 billion fine imposed on Binance. His current net worth exceeds $37 billion, primarily due to his ownership of Binance. Despite a decrease in Binance’s market share, the rebound in the cryptocurrency market has significantly increased trading volume.
However, CZ’s assets still have a significant gap compared to their peak value of nearly $97 billion in early 2022 and the intra-year high of $50.4 billion in July 2023.
CZ has not commented on this, and his holdings of BTC and BNB are not included in the valuation of the billionaires index. He ranks 37th on the list and 15th in terms of year-on-year growth.
In addition to CZ, Bloomberg notes that several other cryptocurrency entrepreneurs have seen a significant increase in their assets:
– Barry Silbert, the founder of DCG: His assets have increased by $1.5 billion, reaching $2 billion.
– Brian Armstrong, the CEO of Coinbase: His assets have increased by $5.8 billion, reaching around $7.2 billion. He owns approximately 16% of Coinbase shares.
– Fred Ehrsam, the co-founder of Coinbase: He owns around 5% of Coinbase shares, and his assets have increased by approximately $1.8 billion, reaching $2.5 billion.
– Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss, the Winklevoss brothers: Their assets have increased by approximately $1.4 billion through the growth in their ownership of Gemini exchange.
Bloomberg calculates the net worth of billionaires based on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index algorithm. The algorithm estimates the value of equity holdings of billionaires worldwide based on the latest closing prices at the end of the New York trading day and converts them into US dollars using current exchange rates.
Since Binance is a private company, Bloomberg estimates Binance’s revenue based on data from Coingecko, Coinpaprika.com, and CCData on spot and derivative trading volume and transaction fees. It then compares this with the equity value of other companies such as Coinbase, Galaxy Digital, and mining company Riot Platforms. Additionally, it discounts 50% of the equity value due to factors such as the nature of the company and risks related to regulations. Based on previous documents, CZ’s net asset value is calculated, taking into account his 90% ownership of Binance. The $1 billion devaluation of Binance.US due to a lawsuit is also included, and Bloomberg notes that CZ holds an 86% stake in Binance’s US operations. All the cryptocurrencies held by CZ are not included in the calculation.
A spokesperson for Binance previously stated in 2022 that Bloomberg’s valuation of Binance was “inaccurate and far off,” but did not provide further details or respond to Bloomberg’s request for comment.
Finally, Bloomberg mentions Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the founder of FTX, stating that his net worth peaked at $25.9 billion in March last year but is currently stable at $0.
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