Regarding the rumor that Binance is backing Jeff Yang, CZ clarified that YZiLabs has never invested in HyperLiquid.
Crypto Twitter reacted strongly, praising Jeff Yang’s work but criticizing CZ’s tone.
Built by a team of 10 people, Hyperliquid currently handles over 10% of the world’s cryptocurrency derivatives trading.
Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao recently stirred up the crypto community with a tweet directed at Hyperliquid and its founder Jeff Yan.
The post came amid speculation that Hyperliquid might be backed or funded by CZ, but sparked a lively discussion across crypto Twitter after the rumors died down.
CZ’s tweet sparks debate
CZ’s tweet was clear, but some said it was unusually candid.
He reminded the cryptocurrency community that Jeff Yang was part of YZiLabs’ initial incubation group in 2018, but added that the project failed and YZiLabs was unable to recover its investment. He also admitted that he had little interaction with Jeff and missed a scheduled call earlier this year due to a scheduling conflict.
Gossip Tweet. I saw several posts on this topic.
For those who didn’t know, Jeff (HL) was part of the YZiLabs (then Binance Labs) Incubation Season 1 cohort in 2018.
Unfortunately, that project failed. YZiLabs never recovered its investment. It happens.
I didn’t… https://t.co/zUVtjQ3RCO
— CZ🔶BNB (@cz_binance) October 10, 2025
Despite all this, CZ ended with this message of support: “Anyway, we support all builders!”
There was an immediate reaction on virtual currency Twitter. Many criticized this tone as negative. One user scoffed at the message, saying, “I’m so bitter… can you hear yourself?”
However, others used this moment to highlight Jeff Yang’s accomplishments. As one commenter stated, “Kudos to CZ. Of course Jeff basically set the standard for Perp Dex. @HyperliquidX walked so the rest of us could start jogging.”
The mix of criticism and praise sets the stage for a deeper look at the rise of Jeff Yang and Hyperliquid.
Hyperliquid: Built by 10 people, big impact
Jeff Yang’s story proves that small teams can move mountains. Yang, a Harvard-educated physicist and former high-frequency trader, founded HyperLiquid with just 10 people and no venture capital or marketing.
His first crypto venture, a layer 2 prediction market, failed due to regulatory issues. He took lessons focused on users and built Hyperliquid, a custom blockchain capable of 200,000 transactions per second with near-instantaneous confirmations.
Expanding the ecosystem
Jeff didn’t stop at building quick exchanges.
Hyperliquid now hosts HyperEVM, HyperLend, and Felix protocols. Developers are free to create markets on the platform, and institutional investors like Sonnet BioTherapeutics own large stakes in HYPE.
