BNB’s Public Ownership: 66% & a Pardon! 🎩💼

by

Blockchain analytics firm YZi Labs has reported that Binance Coin (BNB) ownership has become widely “dispersed” across the network, as if the public had suddenly discovered the concept of “self-custody” and decided to hoard tokens like a pack of squirrels with a PhD in finance.

More tokens have moved into self-custody and exchange-held public wallets, because nothing says “trust in decentralized systems” like entrusting your crypto to a website that once hosted a man who claimed to be a “crypto guru” but was actually just a very enthusiastic parrot.

BNB’s Ownership Profile

According to YZi Labs’ latest data, roughly 66-67% of BNB’s total supply is held by public participants, including exchange users and those in self-custody wallets. The remaining 33% is presumably held by the BNB Foundation, which maintains a burn reserve used for programmatic token burns-because nothing says “deflationary model” like burning your own coins while the rest of the world is busy printing money.

Meanwhile, Binance’s treasury accounts for about 4-5% of circulating BNB, which serves operational and custodial functions. Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao personally holds less than 1% of the total supply, a figure so small it’s practically a metaphor for his entire career.

YZi Labs held that the largest labeled wallets are primarily associated with burn, operational, or custody purposes, rather than control or speculative holdings. The firm said this distribution structure suggests that BNB has evolved into a broadly held, transparent asset, and a majority of its supply is managed through open, on-chain mechanisms rather than centralized ownership. Or, as someone once said, “The more things change, the more they stay the same-except now the centralization is done via smart contracts and a lot of jargon.”

In terms of its price action, BNB traded mostly between $1,000 and $1,300 over the past month, and faced significant volatility but maintained a generally sideways trend. The token started the month near $1,008, and rose sharply in the first half of October to reach an all-time high above $1,300. However, this rally was followed by a steady correction as prices declined toward the $1,050-$1,100 range. A rollercoaster, but one that’s been rebranded as “volatility with purpose.”

Even as BNB struggled to regain its earlier highs, the token’s exposure to US markets appears to be expanding as new financial instruments such as BNB digital asset treasuries (DATs), ETFs, and listings on major exchanges like Robinhood and Coinbase provide indirect access for US-based participants. Because nothing says “financial inclusion” like letting people invest in crypto through a platform that’s basically a glorified dating app for millennials.

These developments allow investors to gain exposure to BNB using fiat currencies without direct purchases. Because who needs to actually own a token when you can just buy a derivative and pretend you’re part of the “mainstream”?

CZ’s Comeback

In a related development, CZ was recently granted a “full and unconditional” pardon by US President Donald Trump, a move many industry observers believe could ease certain regulatory constraints for Binance tied to past US government cases. However, the pardon quickly sparked controversy, as if anyone expected a man who once said “I’m not a criminal” to be anything other than a walking paradox.

US Senator Elizabeth Warren labeled the decision as “corruption” and alleged that he had financed Trump-linked crypto ventures before seeking clemency. CZ denied the accusations and clarified that there were no money laundering charges, only a Bank Secrecy Act violation, and accused Warren of spreading misinformation. He also suggested that political bias under the Biden administration had influenced his prosecution. A drama worthy of a Shakespearean tragedy, if only the cast had better lines.

Read More

2025-11-03 00:50