Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, co-founder and former CEO of Binance, has pushed back against suggestions that the exchange was a key driver behind last October’s massive crypto market crash.
During a live AMA session hosted on Binance’s platform, Zhao described the accusations as exaggerated and disconnected from how broader market forces were unfolding at the time. According to coverage from Bloomberg, he argued that focusing on one exchange overlooks the scale of leverage and risk that had already built up across the industry before the crash began.
On October 10, the market was hit by a huge round of liquidations, with about $19 billion in leveraged positions wiped out in one day, the biggest single-day shakeout crypto has seen. The drop was so quick that a lot of traders couldn’t adjust their positions in time, particularly people using high leverage in futures. As prices fell, traders flagged technical hiccups and odd price moves on several platforms, including Binance, which only added to the panic and uncertainty spreading through the market.
Binance later said it had compensated affected users and institutional clients roughly $600 million for losses tied to platform-related problems during the turmoil. The exchange maintained that it acted quickly to address the issues and support impacted customers.
Your completely free resource hub designed to boost your knowledge of cryptocurrencies
There’s still debate over how much impact a single exchange can have during major market swings, but the incident showed how quickly heavy leverage can unravel when conditions turn. CZ’s comments reflect a view many in the industry share, that big selloffs usually come from a mix of factors, not just one company. In a market as connected as crypto, trouble in one corner can spread quickly, which is why big selloffs are rarely caused by just one thing going wrong.
