CZ Says Crypto Has Emerged From Harshest Winter, Cites RWA Tokenization and Regulatory Progress
Key Takeaways
- •Changpeng Zhao said the crypto sector has already endured its harshest downturn and now appears more mature than in earlier cycles.
- •He said tokenization of real-world assets is one of the most promising areas because it can make assets easier to move and trade globally.
- •Zhao said the UAE is a leading crypto jurisdiction, while the US is making rapid progress on rules for stablecoins and exchanges.
- •He described Japan as crypto-friendly, Hong Kong as expanding quickly, and Singapore as more cautious in its approach.
- •Zhao said decentralized exchanges have advanced significantly over the past eight years and could benefit further from looser regulation.
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said the cryptocurrency sector has weathered the harshest “crypto winter” in its history and that the industry’s fundamental dynamics remain strong.
Speaking at the Bitcoin Asia 2026 event in Hong Kong, Zhao said the market has matured significantly after the sharp declines seen in previous cycles. Zhao, widely known as CZ, expressed a positive overall outlook for the sector.
Zhao said expectations are especially strong in the tokenization of real-world assets (RWA). He noted that tokenized assets on-chain can reduce time and border transaction constraints, while also increasing the liquidity of small and medium-sized assets by connecting them with global investors. That framing reflects why RWA tokenization is drawing attention across the industry: it links traditional assets with blockchain infrastructure in a way that could make them easier to transfer and trade.
Addressing global regulatory approaches in the cryptocurrency sector, Zhao said the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is one of the leading countries in the field. He also said the US is making rapid progress in regulating stablecoins and cryptocurrency exchanges.
Zhao added that Japan takes a friendly approach toward the crypto sector, Hong Kong is growing rapidly, and Singapore is pursuing a more cautious policy than other regions. His comments placed the sector’s development in a broader policy context, where the pace and clarity of regulation can shape how quickly products and services are launched across different markets.
CZ also said decentralized exchanges (DEXs) have improved significantly over the past eight years in both technological infrastructure and user awareness. He said DEXs have become a more mature part of the crypto ecosystem and argued that the sector could advance even further if regulatory conditions were relaxed globally. The remarks pointed to decentralized trading as another area where infrastructure development and regulatory treatment remain closely watched.
Zhao’s remarks suggested that greater regulatory clarity in the crypto market, broader adoption of RWA tokenization, and continued development of decentralized finance infrastructure could play an important role in the sector’s next phase of growth.
This is not investment advice.
