Meet Binance's new co-CEO Yi He: The mysterious and omnipresent 'life partner' of CZ

Binance Holdings, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, named a caller co-CEO Wednesday successful a large shake-up of its enactment structure.

Yi He, who co-founded Binance with erstwhile caput Changpeng Zhao successful 2017 and has children with the crypto mogul, volition present divided duties with acting CEO Richard Teng, who announced the quality this week.

The determination represents the firm's astir important enactment alteration since Teng succeeded Zhao, who pleaded blameworthy to violating U.S. money-laundering laws successful 2023. 

Teng, who was appointed amid aggravated regulatory scrutiny of Binance and crypto much broadly, notably had a inheritance successful fiscal regularisation and services, formerly holding a elder regulatory relation at Singapore's cardinal bank.

"[Yi He] has been determination from the start, and she has been driving a batch of changes and driving the maturation of Binance," Teng told CNBC's Dan Murphy connected Wednesday soon aft the announcement.

Yi He's elevation to the co-CEO position represents the assignment of an insider with longstanding ties to Zhao, besides known arsenic CZ.

The determination comes aft U.S. President Donald Trump pardoned CZ, who had previously pleaded blameworthy to enabling wealth laundering while heading the cryptocurrency exchange.

The Trump medication has taken a friendlier stance toward the crypto industry, with respective high-profile cases dropped successful caller months. 

Yi He has maintained a comparatively debased nationalist illustration compared to CZ, with galore details regarding her roles and activities astatine Binance unclear.

Her societal profiles database her astir caller presumption arsenic Chief Customer Service Officer astatine the crypto exchange.

One of the past large nationalist statements from the businesswoman was in defence of CZ during his 2024 trial, among 161 letters requesting leniency from the court.

In her missive written successful Chinese, Yi He identified herself arsenic CZ's concern spouse and "the parent of his 3 children."

She claimed that she met CZ astatine a nationalist blockchain lawsuit successful 2014, 3 years earlier Binance was founded. She was past moving astatine cryptocurrency speech OKCoin and recruited CZ to articulation her.

"As CZ's beingness partner, I've known him for astir 10 years, truthful I recognize a broadside of him that's often overlooked," she wrote successful the 2024 missive defending him.

Binance said successful a statement Wednesday that Yi He has "played a cardinal relation successful shaping Binance's imaginativeness and culture, guiding a strategy focused connected users' needs and innovation."

The institution besides included a nationalist connection from Yi He, successful which she emphasized her and Teng's "complementary perspectives and shared vision." 

"Together, we bring divers perspectives and are assured successful starring the aboriginal of the manufacture during this pivotal time, arsenic we responsibly grow our planetary beingness and thrust sustainable innovation with our users ever astatine the center," she said.

Federal probes into Binance person besides referenced her relation successful the company. In 2020, U.S. prosecutors reportedly sought records of communications involving Yi He and different executives related to anti-money laundering compliance and the instauration of Binance's U.S. entity.

Media reports person antecedently painted Yi He arsenic a "Crypto Queen" wielding monolithic sway down the scenes astatine Binance. 

According to a report from the Wall Street Journal successful 2023,  Yi He was a erstwhile Chinese talk-show big earlier joining OKCoin, and she entered a narration with CZ portion moving unneurotic successful Shanghai. 

The study added that He would presume sweeping power implicit the crypto giant's selling and concern divisions. 

Binance and Yi He did not instantly respond to CNBC's petition for comment.