Binance Labs, the former investment arm of stock exchange giant Binance, is getting a major overhaul under a new name, YZi Labs, with former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao closely involved in operations, the company announced Thursday.
The rebranding means the investment firm is shifting from being the venture capital arm of the exchange to the family office of CZ and Binance co-founder Yi He, Bloomberg reported.
“Under this change, [CZ] “She will take a more active role in investment activities, engaging directly with founders and providing mentorship and coaching,” YZi Labs said in a statement. Share X. The company is also expanding its investment focus beyond web3 into artificial intelligence and biotechnology.
Zhao co-founded Binance and led it to become the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume. Last April, Zhao was sentenced to four months in prison for violating the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) by failing to establish a proper know-your-customer (KYC) program at Binance. As part of his guilty plea, he agreed to pay a $50 million fine and step down as CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange. He was released in September.
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