CZ AMA Summary: Binance Will Not Engage in Specific Meme Coin Pumping, Investment Should Be More of a "Buy" Than a "Loan"

April 15 – Changpeng Zhao (CZ), founder of Binance, wrapped up his AMA (Ask Me Anything) session on Binance Square today. Key takeaways from his remarks include: - **Meme Coins**: When asked if Binance would offer targeted support for native meme coins (many now tied to Binance-related tweets), CZ noted the BNB Chain already has robust infrastructure for meme coins (e.g., PancakeSwap). He emphasized that specific operations and project selection should be left to users’ own judgment. - **Entrepreneurial Journey**: CZ shared he’s launched multiple small startups since youth and gained early exposure to entrepreneurship. He worked at large firms (3,000–6,000 employees) but disliked the rigid 9-to-5 structure, preferring dynamic, small-team environments. He’s had many failed ventures and advised entrepreneurs to control risk, avoid heavy debt, and treat investments as “investments” (not loans). Before founding Binance, he worked 17 full years—contrasting with the rare college-dropout startup founders. - **Book Writing**: Writing a book is a lengthy process involving drafting, editing, reviews, publisher discussions, cover design, and more. First drafts are “always very bad,” requiring 10–20 rounds of revisions (2–3 weeks each). Memoirs risk offending people (they demand honesty about issues and involved parties; “writing a memoir is a good way to rub friends the wrong way,” he noted). Now, he’s at a life stage where he can accept criticism openly. The crypto industry faces constant negative narratives, so the book lets him share his perspective on the true story. Many “juicy details” were cut—they may return in a second edition. - **Investment Philosophy**: Binance was rejected by all VCs initially (inevitable, he said). Early projects are hard to judge; you can only bet on the founder (he admitted he might’ve rejected early Binance too). No one can back 100% successful projects—if you fund every venture, 99.999% will fail. The ideal: a 70–80% failure rate, with successful picks growing 10–100x for net positive returns. He favors mission-driven founders and particularly likes bear-market investments (teams pushing projects amid downturns are likely to survive). Bull markets bring overvaluation, so he avoids projects where valuation outstrips their stage. He prefers ventures with tangible products and consistent progress.