Binance Bets on Shared Leadership to Navigate Its Post-CZ Era

Binance has entered a new chapter in its corporate evolution, unveiling a leadership model that places two executives at the top of the organization.

Co-founder Yi He will now serve as co-CEO alongside Richard Teng, marking the first time the exchange has adopted a dual-leadership framework. The move was revealed during Binance Blockchain Week in Dubai and reflects the company’s ongoing push to formalize its governance structure as it matures beyond its start-up roots.

The decision to split executive authority between Yi He and Teng comes as Binance continues to adjust to life after Changpeng Zhao’s departure in 2023. Teng, who stepped in following CZ’s exit, has spent the past year reshaping the exchange in line with regulatory expectations around the globe. The introduction of a co-CEO, however, signals that Binance now views its future as requiring a broader set of capabilities at the top.

Yi He’s expanded role highlights her long-standing influence inside the company. Although often less publicly visible than CZ, she has been instrumental in shaping Binance’s product ecosystem, community growth and brand identity since its inception. Her background – one that ranges from media work to early crypto entrepreneurship – has made her a defining force in the exchange’s culture. Binance now appears to be formalizing what insiders have long recognized: that Yi He has functioned as a strategic architect behind the scenes.

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While Yi He represents the crypto-native, product-oriented core of Binance, Teng provides the regulatory backbone. With years of experience in traditional financial supervision before joining the exchange, he has become the face of Binance’s effort to establish trust among institutions and government agencies. Together, the two embody the blend of innovation and compliance that Binance hopes will guide its next phase.

This leadership pairing is emerging at a moment when Binance is still navigating the aftermath of its settlement with U.S. regulators and working to strengthen operations across multiple key jurisdictions. By elevating Yi He and maintaining Teng’s oversight of regulatory expansion, the company is signaling that it wants to stabilize its foundation without slowing its global ambitions.

The dual-CEO structure ultimately reflects Binance’s attempt to strike a lasting balance: preserve the innovative, fast-moving culture that defined its rise, while simultaneously building the governance and regulatory alignment expected of a global financial platform. With both executives now sharing responsibility for steering the exchange forward, Binance is positioning itself for a more durable and institutionally acceptable future.