Exchange
|3 min ReadCZ’s YZi Labs weighs opening to outside capital
Maya Chen
Senior Analyst
Published
Jan 16, 2026
CZ’s $10 billion fund, YZi Labs, is considering outside money as demand climbs and Washington warms to crypto under the Trump administration. Miss this wave and you watch others front-run the best allocations.
Why this matters now
YZi Labs manages Changpeng “CZ” Zhao’s personal fortune and capital from a small circle of early Binance insiders, including co-founder Yi He. It took about $300 million of outside money in 2022, then returned part of it. The reason was simple. The internal pool was already massive.
“There’s always a lot of external investors interested,” fund head Ella Zhang told the Financial Times. “We will eventually consider turning it into an external-facing fund. We just think it’s not there yet.” That tells you two things. Demand is there. Timing is the lever.
Inside YZi Labs
The portfolio is stacked with crypto infrastructure and category leaders. Aptos Labs, Polygon, 1inch Network, Sky Mavis. Plus LayerZero, Mysten Labs, and CertiK on the plumbing and security side. Dealroom counts more than 230 companies tied to the franchise.
Opening the doors would change the game for allocators who want exposure to early rounds without building a full venture team. It would also formalize the shift from a private family-style vehicle to a fund that competes for institutional checks.
Regulators and rivals are moving
Zhang said the Securities and Exchange Commission recently asked for a private demo of YZi-backed companies after its chair missed the fund’s demo day at the New York Stock Exchange. “Paul Atkins and other commissioners, they are very open-minded,” she said. Atkins has served as SEC chair since April 2025. That signals a friendlier stance than the one that dominated the last cycle.
Context matters. CZ resigned from Binance last year after pleading guilty to a U.S. criminal charge tied to Anti-Money Laundering controls. He served four months in prison. He is seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump. He still holds the largest stake in Binance.
Meanwhile, the market wants product. In June, Galaxy Digital raised 175 million for its first externally backed venture fund, topping a 150 million target. In July, analyst Willy Woo said he sold most of his Bitcoin, arguing he could earn higher returns by investing in Bitcoin infrastructure. His claim was simple. Early-stage Bitcoin startups can deliver 100 to 1,000 times.
The signal is clear. Capital is rotating toward crypto venture. If YZi Labs opens to outsiders, the best seats will not sit empty.
Disclaimer: This document is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. The views expressed in this document are not, and should not be taken as, investment advice or recommendations. Recipients should do their own due diligence, taking into account their specific financial circumstances, investment objectives and risk tolerance, which are not considered here, before investing. This document is not an offer, or the solicitation of an offer, to buy or sell any of the assets mentioned.