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Two of the crypto world’s most prominent figures, Changpeng Zhao (CZ) and Pavel Durov, met in Kazakhstan, host of the region’s largest tech forum, this week.
The entrepreneurs were welcomed by the Central Asian nation’s president, who praised their contributions to the development of the cryptocurrency space.
The meetings take place at a time when his country is actively trying to establish itself as a major crypto destination in the Eurasian region.
Binance’s CZ runs into Telegram’s Durov in Astana
Zhao bumped into Durov on the sidelines of the Digital Bridge 2025 forum, held October 2-4 in Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana. The event gathered thousands of participants from over 100 countries to discuss hot tech topics, from artificial intelligence (AI) to big data and blockchain technology.
CZ took to X on Thursday to post a photo of the two together. The founder and former chief executive of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, said he shared notes on a few countries with the owner and CEO of Telegram, the crypto community’s favorite messenger.
Ran into @Durov in Astana today. Shared our notes on a few countries. 😂 pic.twitter.com/viXVJT15Xu
— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) October 2, 2025
The meeting follows a recent brief exchange between them on social media, after the Chinese-born Canadian businessman revealed he doesn’t own any Telegram accounts. Responding to an X user, CZ said he is not using the messaging app due to spam concerns.
Russian-born Durov reacted a little later, highlighting a feature that now allows celebrities to protect their accounts from being flooded with messages, and calling Zhao’s earlier suggestion to let users paywall their inbox a “great idea.”
The dialogue, which started in September, continued this week with the photo of the two. CZ admitted they talked about his post and acknowledged Durov has implemented the pay-to-reach function.
“Fully aligned on countries. P. S. I look Chinese here. Your aura is too strong!” Telegram’s founder said in a comment.
Kazakhstan’s Tokayev accepts Zhao and Durov
While in Kazakhstan, both crypto entrepreneurs also met separately with its president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. The Kazakh head of state praised Binance’s founder for his role in the development of the global crypto industry and that of his country’s growing digital assets sector.
This was highlighted in a statement released by his press service:
“Following his visit in 2022, a memorandum was signed on the creation of a regional crypto industry hub in Kazakhstan based on Binance Lab. Since then, the country has been implementing an increasing number of promising projects and initiatives in blockchain and crypto technologies.”
Kazakhstan started to glow on the world’s crypto map when it became a magnet for crypto miners in the wake of a Chinese ban on the activity a few years ago. Since then, it has addressed issues such as power deficit caused by the mining boom and taken steps to regulate the trading of minted coins.
In another social media post, Zhao acknowledged the significant change in the past three years, during which Binance was granted a Kazakhstani license, the country issued a stablecoin pegged to its national fiat, the tenge, and created a crypto reserve, buying BNB as its first asset.
Kazakhstan has all it takes to become Eurasia’s key crypto destination, according to Binur Zhalenov, its central bank’s chief digital officer. Speaking at a securities forum in Almaty last week, he indicated Kazakh authorities are working to maximize their potential in digital finance.
Telegram to launch AI lab in Kazakhstan
Earlier, Tokayev met with Telegram’s founder as well. They discussed cooperation in cybersecurity, education, and artificial intelligence, among other spheres, the Russian business news portal RBC reported, quoting a press release.
During his visit, Durov announced Telegram is launching an AI lab in Kazakhstan. Last year, it opened a regional office there and joined the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) hub.
Also in 2024, the TON coin, which is deeply integrated into the messenger’s platform, was approved for trading on Kazakhstan’s regulated exchanges.
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