- Binance, the biggest crypto exchange worldwide, spent $500 million on Musk’s acquisition.
- Changpeng Zhao, Binance CEO, stated that he supported Elon Musk’s tweet buyout to support freedom of speech.
- Zhao, also known by CZ, is a prolific Twitter user with over 7.2 million followers.
Changpeng Zhao “CZ”, the CEO of BinanceAccording to him, the world’s biggest crypto exchange by trading volume had invested $500 million in Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter. It was worth $44 Billion. His love for free speech drove his investment.
“Number 1, we want to be extremely supportive for free speech. Zhao stated, “As a business we are trying to increase the freedom to money. And free speech comes before freedom to money, so it is important to support free speech.” Zhao made these comments at the Web Summit tech conference held in LisbonTuesday
Zhao confirmed Binance’s Twitter investment via a Twitter tweet on October 28, saying that his intern had wired 500 million dollars to him. Insider was also informed Wednesday by Binance that it is an equity investor in Musk’s Twitter acquisition.
—CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) October 28, 2022
Zhao also cited other “very strong reasons” why he invested in the social media platform — such as Twitter being the “global town square” where people from crypto enthusiasts to politicians can voice their opinions.
Zhao is a regular Twitter user and has 7.2 million followers. At the Web Summit, Zhao stated that he uses the Twitter app more often than the Binance app. He explained that he does not trade but rather uses Binance to store his cryptocurrency.
Binance isn’t the only prominent backer of Musk’s acquisition Twitter. The following are other high-profile investors involved in the deal: Qatar Investment AuthorityAnd Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed bin TalalAccording to various regulatory filings.
Zhao stated that despite investing $500 million in Musk’s deal Zhao has no insight into the Tesla CEO’s plans for Twitter. Elon is the CEO of Tesla, and we rely on him to manage it, which is great, he stated.
“We are excited to be able help Elon realize his new vision for Twitter. We are determined to help social media succeed. Web3Together in order to increase the adoption and use of crypto and blockchain technology,” Zhao said in a statement to Insider.
