Changpeng Zhao (CZ) missed one of the biggest crypto markets. The founder of Binance now admits that he misjudged the stablecoin market for years.
He told the Talking Tokens Podcast that he wrote it. Today those tokens are worth more than $311 billion.
CZ Says They Missed the Stablecoin Boom
Zhao he spoke on the Talking Tokens podcast. He also looked at the phones that had gone wrong. Leaving Binance gave CZ time to relearn the market.
Stablecoins are crypto tokens that are pegged to the US dollar. Each one wants to be worth one dollar. Traders use them to move money quickly, day or night.
He did not openly answer what he did wrong.
“When I was running Binance, I was like the stablecoins that were missed.
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A Temporary Patchwork That Became a Giant
Changpeng Zhao he saw stablecoins as a fast track. They thought they were just moving money between exchanges. He was wrong.
“I thought this was just a temporary technology to facilitate exchanges between crypto exchanges, but it turned out to be a big…”
Stablecoins were small when Binance launched in 2017. Now the market cap is over $311 billion. Tether (USDT) leads with about $184 billion.
That is about 60% of the sector. It makes Tether the largest crypto, behind Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). Circle’s USDC is in second place, with about $77 billion.
That is a huge market to miss.
The technology he questioned is now the US the law. The US passed the GENIUS Act in July 2025. It established the first regulations for the world of stablecoins.
Weeks earlier, Circle was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Its shares jumped more than 160% on the first day.
Why CZ Now Focusing on the Stablecoin Market Missed
Changpeng Zhao doesn’t want to miss the next big thing. He says that stepping down as CEO gave him an opportunity to learn. Now they learn new areas that they previously ignored.
“When I’m forced to step back, I kind of look at the whole industry.”
He criticizes how he got involved with Binance.
“As the CEO of Binance, when I was running it, I was so busy that I couldn’t even learn new crypto things properly.”
The lesson stuck. Zhao says early suspicions can cost a lot of money. Stablecoins are proof of that.
A note Changpeng Zhao Ignored This One Market, Now Worth Over $311 Billion appeared for the first time BeInCrypto.
