Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has publicly disputed a Forbes ranking that places his net worth at approximately $110 billion, calling the figures inaccurate and logically inconsistent with current market conditions.
The pushback came after highlights placed CZ at 17th on the Forbes Billionaires List, ahead of Bill Gates and above ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming.
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Why it matters:
- Forbes’ valuation methodology for crypto-native founders lacks a transparent revenue-to-wealth calculation, CZ argues.
- A widely circulated $110 billion figure could distort public and regulatory perception of Binance’s financial scale.
- CZ warned that claiming higher net worth would likely cause Forbes to rank him lower, suggesting the estimates lack internal consistency.
The details:
- CZ says that ByteDance generates ~$150 billion in annual revenue, yet Zhang Yiming is valued at $69 billion, while Binance’s ~$5 billion revenue yields a $110 billion valuation for him.
- In an earlier post, CZ said he identified the error from a chart alone without reading the Forbes article.
- CZ rejected BlockTempo’s suggestion that his denials reflect a Chinese cultural norm around concealing wealth.
The big picture:
- Crypto price declines exceeding 50% in 2026 make upward net worth revisions for exchange founders difficult to justify on fundamentals.
- Forbes’ billionaire rankings for crypto figures rely heavily on estimated token holdings and exchange equity, both highly volatile inputs.
