Binance denies Changpeng Zhao 'CZ' faces Interpol Red Notice: Spokesperson

Quick Take

  • Rumors have been floating around Crypto Twitter that Zhao was issued a Red Notice by Interpol.

Binance denied rumors that its chief executive officer Changpeng “CZ” Zhao faces a Red Notice request issued by The International Criminal Police Organization to locate and arrest the crypto founder.

“This rumor is not true,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement to The Block.

The rumor, which was magnified by crypto Twitter personality ‘Cobie,’ triggered a drop in the price of Binance’s BNB token as well as the broader market. In a tweet, Cobie shared a sequence of numbers and letters encrypted using the SHA-256 hash function, as reported by CoinDesk.

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Binance has found itself in the crosshairs of U.S. regulators, with the Commodities Futures Trading Commission announcing last month its own civil enforcement action against the exchange. The complaint charges CZ and Binance with violating the Commodity Exchange Act and other CFTC regulations. 

A Red Notice is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and arrest a person pending extradition, surrender or similar legal action. 


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