- CZ denied claims that YZi Labs plans to lift outdoors capital, saying no talks or requests have taken place.
- Conflicting reviews stemmed from Ella Zhang’s feedback to the FT, which Zhao says have been misrepresented.
- YZi Labs continues to function independently, backing main crypto initiatives whereas constructing experience in AI and biotech.
Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has shot down reviews that YZi Labs, the rebranded enterprise arm he co-founded, is opening the door to outdoors capital. In a Tuesday publish on X, Zhao wrote bluntly: “YZiLabs will not be elevating [an] exterior fund… since rebranding, [it] has not sought a single exterior investor. No requests, no discussions.” His response adopted a Monetary Occasions article quoting YZi Labs head Ella Zhang suggesting the agency might finally convert right into a $10 billion externally managed fund.
Confusion Round Ella Zhang’s Remarks
The Monetary Occasions cited Zhang as saying exterior buyers have been and that YZi Labs might someday evolve into an outward-facing fund, however Zhao dismissed the report. He confused that YZi Labs has not been “spun out” of Binance and operates independently. Zhang and Zhao initially co-founded Binance Labs in 2018, with the entity rebranded to YZi Labs in January 2025. The timing of the rebrand got here simply after Zhao accomplished a four-month jail time period for a Financial institution Secrecy Act violation.
Independence and Lengthy-Time period Imaginative and prescient
Whereas Zhang has beforehand steered YZi Labs operates individually from Binance, reviews have usually blurred the agency’s position. Zhao underscored on Tuesday that YZi Labs will not be a household workplace and has no present plans to lift capital externally. He famous the enterprise group’s focus is on long-term investments throughout crypto, AI, and biotech—fields the place it’s nonetheless constructing deeper experience. “Failure to police will not be the identical as stealing,” Zhao added, taking a jab at conventional media’s portrayal of his previous authorized case.
Observe File and Market Standing
Regardless of the present controversy, YZi Labs stays one of the influential VCs in crypto. It has backed prime initiatives like Aptos Labs, Polygon, LayerZero, Dune Analytics, and Mysten Labs. Though Binance Labs raised a $500 million fund with outdoors companions in 2022, Zhang mentioned most undeployed capital was returned, with the bulk coming from Binance itself. For now, Zhao insists YZi Labs is transferring at its personal tempo: “The demand could be very excessive… [but] we’re not in a rush to exit.”
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