Binance Founder CZ Clears Meme Coin Rumors After $1.6M Spam Token Burn
In brief
- Changpeng Zhao denied rumors of secretly backing meme coins on BNB Chain
- On-chain researchers detected $1.6 million in third-party tokens sent to burn address from CZ's wallet
- Zhao explained transfers were routine cleanup of spam tokens accumulated over years
- Spam tokens caused wallet interface malfunction and balance display errors
The Spam Problem
Zhao stated that he was simply getting rid of digital garbage. Creators of third-party projects had been sending spam tokens to his address for years, cluttering the wallet interface and preventing it from displaying the balance correctly. The issue had become significant enough to warrant action.
On-chain data from Arkham clearly shows that the Binance founder's wallet has been targeted with spam for years and that he regularly carries out similar cleanups. Around eight months ago, Zhao destroyed batches of tokens worth $43,490, $142,500, and $305,870 in three separate transactions. A year ago, the wallet underwent an even more aggressive cleanup. Four large transfers sent assets worth $358,220, $1.95 million, $546,900, and $1.1 million into a burn address.
In total, Zhao has manually destroyed more than $6.24 million worth of third-party spam tokens over the past year.
Precedent in Crypto
This pattern isn't unique to Zhao. In 2021, creators of Shiba Inu sent half of the token's total supply to Vitalik Buterin without his consent in an attempt to artificially lend the project legitimacy. The Ethereum co-founder later burned 90% of the tokens and urged developers not to repeat this practice.
Sending it to my address might as well send it straight into a black hole — it reduces one step of operation, making it more direct and effective. — Changpeng Zhao, Binance founder
Zhao's explanation underscores a recurring friction point in crypto: unsolicited token transfers to high-profile wallets. By burning the tokens outright, he's preventing them from ever entering circulation or being mistaken as an endorsement of the underlying projects.
