Binance Co-Founder CZ to Advise Pakistan’s New Crypto Council

Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao agreed Monday to advise Pakistan’s recently formed Crypto Council amid the nation’s push to attract foreign investors. 

Zhao will guide the council’s efforts to advance Pakistan’s crypto “regulations, infrastructure, education, and adoption,” Bloomberg Law’s Islamabad correspondent reported. The group of Pakistani policymakers aims to promote regulatory clarity on digital assets to “unlock the full potential of the sector” in Pakistan, the country’s Finance Ministry said in a statement in March. 

CZ signed on as an advisor to the council just a few weeks after the group’s inaugural meeting on March 21.

The Crypto Council’s ramping up follows signs that foreign investment in Pakistan is lagging. Pakistan’s foreign direct investment plunged 45% last February compared to the same month a year prior, English-language local newspaper Pakistan Today reported. 

Pakistan Crypto Council CEO Bilal Bin Saqib told Bloomberg TV in March that the group’s work forms part of a broader effort to refashion Pakistan into the crypto capital of South Asia.

Central and Southern Asia and Oceania is the third largest region for crypto investments, accounting for more than $750 billion in crypto asset inflows, Chainalysis data shows. And the Southeast Asia cryptocurrency market is projected to grow 8.5% over the next eight years, according to data from global market research firm IMARC Group. 

The announcement of Zhao’s new role marks the latest sign the former executive is re-immersing himself in Web3 after stepping down as CEO of Binance as part of a plea deal with U.S. authorities. The founder earlier this year announced his first big crypto investment with venture firm YZi Labs, just a few months after completing a four-month prison stint for violating money laundering rules during his tenure as chief executive at Binance. 

CZ has also remained busy beyond the crypto sphere during the past year and a half. In 2024, Zhao launched Giggle Academy, a non-profit digital education platform for students between grades one and 12, calling the initiative the “most impactful thing I could do with my life.”

Edited by James Rubin