Tron founder Justin Sun says he’s unaware of the recent rumors surrounding former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, following reports alleging that Zhao provided evidence against him as part of his plea deal with the US Department of Justice (DoJ).
“I’m not aware of the circulating rumors. CZ is both my mentor and a close friend,” Sun said in an April 11 X post.
Sun brushes off CZ rumors
“He has played a crucial role in supporting me during my entrepreneurial journey,” Sun added.
Sun’s X post came just hours after speculation grew over an April 11 Wall Street Journal report, which alleged that Zhao agreed to provide evidence on Sun as part of his plea deal, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Zhao was sentenced to four months in prison in April 2024 for Anti-Money Laundering (AML) violations.
The report added, “that arrangement hasn’t previously been reported.”
Zhao hasn’t publicly addressed the reports at the time of publication, but the day before, he warned his 10 million X followers that he had been told a “baseless hit piece” about him was being written.
Sun commended Zhao’s integrity and said that the DoJ is one of T3 Financial Crime Unit’s (T3 FCU) — which Tron co-founded along with Tether and TRM Labs — “closest and most trusted partners.”
“To this day, his conduct and principles remain the highest standard I strive to follow as a founder,” Sun said of Zhao. Sun added:
“Whether it’s CZ or our partners at the DOJ, we maintain direct, honest communication at all times. I have full trust in each and every one of them.”
Zhao walked free from a US federal prison on Sept. 27. With a reported net worth of approximately $60 billion at the time, Zhao is the wealthiest person ever to serve a prison sentence in the US.
Meanwhile, on Feb. 26, the US Securities and Exchange Commission and Sun asked a federal court to pause the regulator’s case against the crypto entrepreneur to allow for settlement talks.
In March 2023, the SEC sued Sun and three of his companies, the entity behind Tron, the Tron Foundation and the file-sharing platform backers the BitTorrent Foundation and its San Francisco-based parent firm, Rainberry Inc.
Cointelegraph reached out to the US Department of Justice but did not receive a response by time of publication.
