On March 28, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump granted full pardons to Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed of BitMEX for Bank Secrecy Act violations. However, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), former CEO of Binance, faced jail time in 2024 for similar charges and still awaits a pardon. This discrepancy continues to spark debate, particularly in the UAE, where crypto regulations are rapidly evolving. 2025 saw the pardons granted for BitMEX’s leadership, while CZ remains incarcerated for similar transgressions with Binance. The contrasting outcomes raise questions about the underlying motivations for these decisions and their implications for global cryptocurrency regulation.