BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes criticized the treatment of Binance and the company’s former CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) in a lengthy article posted on his own website. Hayes pointed out that the hefty fine imposed on Binance is an example of arbitrary punitive actions in the hands of the state. According to Hayes, individuals managing centralized exchanges are using state, corporate, and legal structures to remove the intermediaries that would govern the global financial and political system known as Pax Americana.
Changpeng Zhao, rapidly transforming from an obscure figure to one of the world’s wealthiest individuals, reflected the transformative power of the cryptocurrency revolution. Under his leadership, Binance became one of the world’s largest centralized trading platforms, offering millions the opportunity to trade cryptocurrencies. However, CZ’s success did not escape the attention of the financial and political worlds, and the decentralized nature of cryptocurrency posed a challenge to traditional intermediaries.
CZ’s platform enabled people to participate in the industrial revolution within minutes, overturning institutions that historically controlled global financial and political systems. Hayes discusses Binance’s encounter with a record level of fines in this context. Binance faced the highest corporate fine in the history of Pax Americana.
Hayes argues that the fine imposed on Binance should be considered in comparison with the treatment of traditional financial institutions. While Binance, which is less than a decade old, faces severe penalties, older banks are often left out of investigations for more significant violations. Hayes thinks this arbitrary approach highlights the complex relationship between the state and the transformative crypto industry.
Furthermore, Hayes suggests that this absurdity should encourage individuals to reflect on the importance of the crypto movement. In his view, this movement represents one of the deepest developments in the political, financial, and technological fields challenging the current oppressive systems. He points to the ability of cryptocurrency to quickly empower individuals and reshape social structures, emphasizing that the crypto space has the potential to create a parallel financial, political, and economic system based on voluntary participation, free from coercion.
