President Trump has pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the convicted founder of the crypto exchange Binance, according to people familiar with the matter, following months of efforts by Zhao to boost the Trump family's own crypto company.

The president signed the pardon on Wednesday, the people said. Trump recently indicated to advisers that he was sympathetic to arguments of political persecution related to Zhao and others, one of the people said.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump had "exercised his constitutional authority by issuing a pardon for Mr. Zhao, who was prosecuted by the Biden Administration in their war on cryptocurrency." She added: "The Biden Administration's war on crypto is over."

Binance didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

A pardon will likely pave the way for Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, to return to the U.S., after the company pleaded guilty in 2023 to violating U.S. anti-money-laundering requirements and was barred from operating there.

The company has spent nearly a year pursuing a pardon for Zhao, who left prison in September 2024 after serving a four-month sentence for related charges. Earlier this year, the company hired lobbyist Ches McDowell to help pursue a pardon, the Journal previously reported.

Since Trump's election, Binance has also been a key supporter of his family's World Liberty Financial crypto venture, a business that has driven a huge leap in the president's personal wealth.