Binance founder CZ blames crypto's sour 2026 on mix of AI, global tension, 4-year cycle

Policy Binance founder CZ blames crypto's sour 2026 on mix of AI, global tension, 4-year cycle There is no single cause for the crypto market's 50% decline over the past year, the Binance founder told CoinDesk. By Nikhilesh De | Edited by Jesse Hamilton Jun 27, 2026, 1:00 p.m. 4 min read Make preferred on Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Make preferred on Changpeng "CZ" Zhao shares his views on why the crypto markets have tumbled and what the future could bring. (Nikhilesh De/CoinDesk) Summary Show The crypto market's 2026 bear cycle can be tied to a number of factors, Binance founder Changpeng "CZ" Zhao said. Alternative investments like AI firms likely sucked away some of the funds that otherwise might have gone into crypto, but CZ told CoinDesk he expected this to be positive in the long-term. The U.S. Clarity Act failing to pass may not hurt the U.S. from a crypto regulatory standpoint, given other bills and the general advancement of crypto regulations worldwide, he said. There is no easy answer to the question of why crypto markets have fallen so much in the first half of 2026, Binance founder Changpeng "CZ" Zhou said. Geopolitical tensions, investors shifting funds to AI and the typical four-year crypto market cycle may all be contributing to the extended price decline in bitcoin BTC $ 60,309.20 and other cryptocurrencies, he told CoinDesk in an exclusive interview earlier this month. The world's largest cryptocurrency has been on a steady decline since last year, opening 2026 trading near $89,000 and climbing to just over $96,000 before falling to about $60,000, the level near which it trades at press time. The numbers look even worse looking back 12 months; bitcoin — on which he said the strength of Binance is closely tied — hit an all-time high north of $126,000 last October, and is down some 50% since. CZ said his long-term view is that the crypto industry will continue to grow, though that's not a totally selfless assessment. He said most of his net worth is wrapped up in the BNB token, meaning he does have a substantial stake in the health of the crypto market and the exchanges he founded, Binance and Binance.US . But CZ's assessment comes as someone who's been part of the crypto industry — and a key player in growing it — for more than a decade. Read More: CZ, Binance founder, wants to clear up 'misunderstandings' about who he is "Over the long run, the industry will develop," he said. "There's going to be more and more demand for financial technologies, because there will be more and more transactions, so the industry will grow. So, I'm not worried about the industry or the short-term price fluctuations." That "new industries like AI" were taking in the "hot money" from the crypto industry will be a positive fact in the long term, he said. Similarly, CZ said the rapid growth of prediction markets as a tool that could provide price discovery and liquidity would be "good for the population." "We can price things much more accurately and we can predict things more accurately," he said. CZ acknowledged that there is a gambling component to prediction markets , but he said that is also true in other financial markets. "With any financial instrument, there's always some speculators," he said. "The speculators actually provide the liquidity, so it's good that you have that speculation." Policy futures The U.S.'s potential signature crypto policy legislation — the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (known as the Clarity Act) — may become a law by the end of the year if lawmakers can work out some remaining issues , including an ethics provision for government officials, chiefly the president. But he said the Clarity Act and other individual bills are "sort of small, tactical things, which are really important, but those are not gonna impact the growth of crypto longer-term." Even if the Clarity Act does not become law this year, CZ said he expected the U.S. would continue to take a leading role in crypto regulation, adding that other countries were continuing to introduce their own regulations governing digital assets. The U.S. would likely still compete with other countries to introduce rules, and it already has the stablecoin-focused Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, he said. "I, of course, hope to see it get passed, and then every other country will probably copy it to some extent," he said. "If it gets delayed … other countries may move forward first." On the ethics front, CZ acknowledged that after the upcoming midterm election in the U.S., if Democrats retake at least one of the chambers of Congress, they will likely scrutinize President Donald Trump's pro-crypto stance and actions — including the pardons he gave to crypto executives. CZ was the recipient of one such pardon. "I do hope that they realize that crypto is a very important industry for the U.S., and a lot of U.S. people have crypto," he said. Read More: Post-prison CZ says time behind bars didn't hurt the billionaire's business after Binance When asked if he'd be prepared for Democrats' potential new legal authority to compel him to cooperate, he said "there's nothing to hide." "There will be more scrutiny, more inquiries, more clarity," he said. "We're very happy to provide information if they're seeking information." Politics He could be directly affected by the outcome of November's elections, but he said there's nothing he can do about the U.S. political climate, though he stated it during an interview in Washington, where he had set up meetings. "I try to stay as far away from the U.S. politics as I can," he said. "This is a battle for the U.S. players to figure out. We will love to help you in some way, but I think there's a limit on how close we can get." Other crypto leaders, such as Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, have been heavily involved in U.S. congressional elections, backing one of the country's largest political action committees, the Fairshake super PAC. But foreign nationals are banned from direct involvements in U.S. politics. Though he said he's not involving himself in U.S. elections, CZ suggested a political sentiment that's been common among crypto leaders: Crypto enthusiasts will be consequential voters. "Anybody who's anti-crypto now will probably lose quite a lot of votes," he said. CZ Changpeng Zhao Binance Market Structure Legislation Markets Related Assets Bitcoin $ 60,309.20 2.04 % Latest Crypto News 1 Strategy's valuation has fallen below the value of its bitcoin holdings 52 minutes ago 2 Ripple CEO stays bullish on bitcoin but says Saylor's strategy has hurt crypto 5 hours ago 3 Dogecoin and Hyperliquid's HYPE led weekly crypto losses as AI stocks lure buyers 5 hours ago 4 Aave, Solana ecosystem tokens lead crypto rebound as bitcoin steadies near $60,000 16 hours ago 5 U.S. House Democrat, who may soon run key committee, condemns crypto in 401(k)s 17 hours ago 6 Former Ethereum Foundation leader warns of funding gap as governance shifts 18 hours ago 7 Anti-trafficking group says Clarity Act's Section 604 could weaken accountability 18 hours ago 8 Virtuals' Jansen Teng says AI agents are evolving into autonomous economic actors 18 hours ago 9 Securitize expects to raise $400 million as tokenization firm nears public debut 21 hours ago 10 CoinDesk 20 performance update: AAVE jumps 8.9%, leading index higher 23 hours ago Latest Research Equities on Crypto Rails: A Platform Comparison Equities on Crypto Rails: A Platform Comparison US equities on crypto rails: access is easy, on-chain composability is the real test. 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