CZ faces fresh scrutiny as Tron, Binance and KOLs accused of collusion
Justin Sun’s alleged ex accuses CZ’s Binance and Tron of using paid KOL networks and insider trading tactics to rig TRX markets, raising new questions for regulators.
- Alleged ex-partner claims Tron and Binance used paid KOLs and insider tactics to inflate TRX and dump on retail.
- The accusations arrive on top of SEC fraud claims against Sun and past multi‑billion‑dollar enforcement actions tied to Binance and CZ.
- TRX, BNB, BTC and ETH prices have held relatively steady so far, as markets wait to see if evidence reaches regulators.
Justin Sun’s alleged former girlfriend has ignited a storm around Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, accusing him of being part of a “massive” collusion machine tying exchanges, Tron, and paid influencers into one market‑moving ecosystem.
Core allegations around CZ and Binance
In posts now ricocheting across X, the accuser claims exchanges like Binance worked “with projects like Tron to build massive paid KOL networks in order to manipulate markets and insider trade,” a charge amplified by crypto commentator Leonidas to hundreds of thousands of viewers. She describes a system where teams allegedly registered “multiple Binance accounts” under employees’ identities, then used them “to artificially boost TRX’s price” through synchronized buying and selling before “mass selling aimed at retail investors.”
The woman, who identifies herself as Ten Ten, says she was “Justin’s girlfriend during the formative stages of his business with TRX” and now wants to “present evidence to U.S. authorities,” including chat logs and internal records she claims to have preserved. While her narrative targets Justin Sun directly, it repeatedly situates Binance as the main venue of the alleged pump‑and‑dump activity, implying CZ’s flagship exchange was central infrastructure for coordinated wash‑trading and cash‑outs.
Pattern, context, and open questions
Regulators had already accused Sun of “fraud and market manipulation” in a 2023 SEC complaint, which detailed alleged wash‑trading schemes and unregistered securities offerings; Binance and CZ separately faced U.S. enforcement over compliance and trading‑surveillance failures, culminating in CZ’s guilty plea on AML‑related charges in 2023. The new testimony, if corroborated, would extend that picture by suggesting structured collaboration between a major issuer, a top exchange and a paid KOL network, blurring the line between marketing and manipulation.
Market reaction remains muted so far. TRX trades around $0.36, up roughly 2.6% over the last 24 hours, while Binance’s BNB token sits near $855, gaining about 2.2% in the same period. Bitcoin is quoted around $123,470, up 3.3% on the day, with ether near $4,760, adding just over 3% in 24 hours. For now, traders appear to be treating the accusations as noise—yet if Ten Ten follows through on her offer to hand materials to the SEC, CZ and the exchange industry may face another round of uncomfortable scrutiny.
