Changpeng Zhao’s YZiLabs Coup Rocks BNB Treasury BNC

Now, that carefully constructed story is colliding with a very different narrative: an aggressive activist campaign led by YZiLabs, the investment and family office vehicle linked to Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao. Through a detailed Schedule 14A filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), YZiLabs is seeking to reshape, and effectively seize, control of BNC’s board. It wants to expand the board, roll back recent bylaw changes, and install its own slate of directors through a written-consent process that bypasses a traditional shareholder meeting.

For investors, the situation is about much more than board seats. The coup attempt is happening after BNC’s share price has plunged from euphoric highs, even as BNB itself has remained relatively strong. That divergence has created a steep discount to net asset value (NAV), suggesting that public markets no longer trust the way this BNB treasury firm is being managed.

In this in-depth explainer, we will unpack why Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC, what each side is arguing, how markets are reacting, and what this showdown means for the future of crypto corporate governance.

BNC, YZiLabs and CZ: Who are the key players?

The rise of BNB treasury firm BNC

Before Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC, BNC had already become a headline name in digital asset circles. Initially known as CEA Industries, a business with roots in a completely different sector, the company pivoted in 2025 into a BNB-focused corporate treasury strategy. That pivot was supercharged by a $500 million private investment in public equity (PIPE) deal led by 10X Capital and YZiLabs, combining cash and crypto funding to retool the company around BNB holdings.

Shortly after the pivot, BNC announced a $160 million purchase of BNB tokens, instantly making it a leading institutional BNB treasury globally. That move was celebrated as a validation of BNB’s long-term potential and as a new pathway for U.S. institutional investors who wanted BNB exposure without directly holding tokens.

On the back of this BNB treasury story, BNC’s stock price briefly soared, with some reports noting gains of several hundred percent around the time the new strategy was unveiled.  The narrative was simple and powerful: BNC would be the world’s largest BNB treasury, managed under a regulated, publicly traded structure.

YZiLabs and Changpeng Zhao’s expanding influence

YZiLabs is widely described as the family office and investment arm of Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the co-founder and former CEO of Binance. Reports suggest YZiLabs manages a multi-billion-dollar portfolio and has backed a variety of crypto infrastructure, DeFi and Web3 projects, often with an emphasis on impact-driven investing.

Crucially, YZiLabs was not an outsider to BNC. It helped bankroll the treasury firm’s pivot and PIPE raise, then accumulated a meaningful equity stake in the company.  In other words, YZiLabs is not just an opportunistic activist – it is one of the architects of BNC’s BNB strategy and now claims that its own creation is being mishandled.

For the broader BNB ecosystem, that matters. CZ remains one of the most influential figures in crypto. When Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC, the move is naturally interpreted as a signal that something has gone very wrong inside a flagship BNB corporate treasury.

How the boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC began

From PIPE deal to consent solicitation

The story arc from PIPE deal to boardroom coup is surprisingly short. Within just a few months of the July 2025 raise that financed BNC’s transformation into a BNB Network treasury play, YZiLabs has turned from supporter into insurgent.

According to multiple reports, the turning point was a combination of stock price collapse, governance disputes, and delays in disclosures. BNC’s share price, which had spiked after the treasury strategy was announced, later plunged by around 85–90% from its highs, even while the value of BNB holdings remained substantial.

A written-consent power play

A key reason this story is being framed as a “boardroom coup” is the mechanism YZiLabs is using. Instead of waiting for BNC management to call a meeting, YZiLabs is using the written-consent rights embedded in the company’s corporate structure.

If a majority of shareholders sign the consent cards, YZiLabs can, in effect, carry out its changes unilaterally: expand the board, unwind bylaw changes and install its nominees. That makes the phrase “Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC” more than a headline. It describes a real attempt to rewire corporate power from the bottom up.

For governance watchers, this is a textbook example of shareholder activism in a crypto-adjacent public company, with an added twist: the activists are deeply tied to the token ecosystem that the company’s treasury is built around.

What YZiLabs claims is broken at BNC

Governance concerns and the NAV discount

One of the most vivid talking points used by YZiLabs is BNC’s discount to net asset value. The company reportedly holds hundreds of thousands of BNB tokens, worth hundreds of millions of dollars, yet its stock trades at a significant discount to that embedded value.

From YZiLabs’ perspective, this NAV discount is a symptom of poor corporate governance, weak investor trust and a lack of proactive communication. When Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC, it is explicitly framing its move as a way to close that discount and “rescue shareholder value” by fixing what it calls structural mismanagement.

Communication failures and disclosure delays

The other pillar of YZiLabs’ critique is disclosure quality. The firm claims BNC has been slow to publish key regulatory filings and that it has not communicated clearly with shareholders about treasury updates, strategic decisions or risk management.

In the language of modern markets, this is about more than paperwork. Investors reasonably expect timely reporting, granular BNB holdings data, and clear explanations of any hedging, lending or yield-generating strategies.

By stressing these alleged shortcomings, YZiLabs is positioning itself as the champion of transparent BNB treasury management, arguing that its directors will bring a higher bar of communication and crypto-native governance standards to BNC.

How BNC is responding to the boardroom coup

BNC reaffirms commitment to BNB DAT strategy

BNC and its management are not folding quietly. In a formal response, the company reiterated its commitment to its BNB DAT (Digital Asset Treasury) strategy, emphasized its belief in the long-term value of BNB, and said it welcomes constructive shareholder engagement, including from YZiLabs.

BNC has also signaled that it believes its existing board and governance structures are capable of delivering on the firm’s strategy and that the current turmoil does not change its conviction about becoming a leading BNB corporate treasury platform. The company has framed its communication issues as being addressed through improved processes rather than requiring a wholesale board overhaul.

In short, BNC’s message to investors is that it is focused on execution, not drama, and that it can deliver value without ceding control to an external activist.

The optics of a CZ-linked takeover

Still, for many observers, the very fact that Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC creates powerful optics. On one hand, some shareholders may welcome the idea that the creator of Binance and a key figure behind BNB wants greater influence over a company whose only real asset is BNB. On the other hand, skeptics worry about concentration of influence and potential conflicts of interest, especially if a CZ-linked entity effectively controls both the dominant BNB exchange infrastructure and a major BNB treasury firm.

BNC’s response thus implicitly appeals to investors who value checks and balances, even as YZiLabs argues that current checks have already failed.

Market reaction: BNB price, BNC stock and investor sentiment

BNC stock collapse and BNB volatility

The backdrop to this boardroom fight is bruising. As noted earlier, BNC’s shares have suffered a dramatic decline from their post-pivot highs, with some analyses citing a drop in the region of 85–90% from peak levels.

At the same time, BNB’s price, while volatile, has not suffered a comparable collapse. In fact, BNB set new all-time highs earlier in 2025 before retracing, leaving a notable gap between the token’s performance and BNC’s share price.

News that Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC has added another layer of volatility.

Investor psychology: discount, distrust and optionality

From an investor psychology standpoint, the coup highlights three intertwined themes.

First, the discount to NAV reflects not only BNC’s governance issues but also lingering distrust of crypto-linked public companies after several high-profile failures in the sector. A boardroom fight can either exacerbate that distrust or, if resolved in a convincing way, become a catalyst for re-rating.

Second, the fact that Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC gives shareholders optionality. If they believe YZiLabs’ nominees will close the discount and improve communication, they may support the consent campaign.

Third, the drama underscores how token performance and equity performance can diverge. BNB can do well as a network and asset, while a particular BNB treasury firm can underperform badly if its governance, capital structure or communication strategy is flawed.

What this coup means for crypto corporate governance

A test case for activist campaigns in token-tied public firms

The fact that Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC makes this saga a test case for activist campaigns in crypto-adjacent public companies.

Among the most important are:

How should regulators and shareholders evaluate the conflicts of interest when a token’s key ecosystem figure seeks control of a major treasury that holds that token?

What level of on-chain transparency should be expected from a company whose value is largely codified on a public blockchain?

Should BNB treasury firms and similar vehicles be run more like ETFs and closed-end funds, with strict NAV reporting and governance rules, or more like operating companies with wider discretion?

The way this BNC–YZiLabs dispute is resolved will likely influence governance norms for future token treasury vehicles, whether they hold BNB, BTC, ETH or other assets.

Lessons for future BNB treasuries and token-backed companies

There are several emerging lessons from the fact that Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC.

First, governance must evolve as fast as token adoption. It is not enough to assemble a large BNB treasury; the oversight, reporting and investor-relations apparatus must be equally robust.

Third, the market seems to be sending a clear message: token exposure alone is not a moat. Investors are increasingly able to access BNB and other assets through ETFs, ETPs, on-chain products and centralized exchanges. For a BNB treasury firm to justify its existence, it must prove that its governance, strategy and capital allocation add genuine value on top of the raw token.

What happens next in the YZiLabs vs BNC saga?

The immediate next steps hinge on the consent solicitation process. YZiLabs will continue lobbying shareholders to sign its consent cards, emphasizing that Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC in the name of unlocking value and restoring trust. BNC, meanwhile, will seek to convince investors that its current board is capable of steering the company through market volatility without caving to what it may portray as an overreach by a powerful stakeholder.

Possible scenarios include:

The consent campaign succeeds, and YZiLabs’ nominees take control, triggering a wave of changes in disclosure policies, investor outreach and potentially the structure of the BNB treasury itself.

The campaign fails, but pressure forces BNC to adopt partial reforms – such as adding independent directors, enhancing reporting, or tying management compensation more directly to NAV performance.

The conflict escalates further, potentially moving into courtrooms or regulatory arenas if either side challenges the validity of consents, bylaw changes or disclosure practices.

Conclusion

The phrase “Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC” captures more than a headline-grabbing fight.

On one side is YZiLabs, arguing that poor governance, weak communication and a yawning NAV discount justify radical action. On the other is BNC, insisting that it remains committed to its BNB DAT strategy and can deliver long-term value without handing control to a powerful activist closely tied to the underlying token’s ecosystem.

For investors, this saga is a reminder that buying into a BNB treasury firm is not the same as simply buying BNB. Equity comes with governance risk, strategic execution risk and human behavior layered on top of token volatility.

Whatever the outcome of this boardroom coup attempt, it will reshape expectations not just for BNC, but for any future company that promises to be a public-market gateway into major crypto treasuries.

FAQs

Q. What exactly is happening when Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC?

When Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC, it is using a legal mechanism called a consent solicitation to ask BNC shareholders to sign written approvals allowing it to expand the company’s board, reverse certain bylaw changes and replace current directors with its own nominees, effectively shifting control of the BNB treasury firm without waiting for a traditional shareholder meeting.

Q. Why is YZiLabs targeting BNC’s board instead of just selling its shares?

YZiLabs argues that BNC’s discount to the value of its BNB holdings, combined with alleged disclosure delays and governance weaknesses, has destroyed shareholder value, and that simply selling shares would not fix the underlying problem. By launching this boardroom coup, it hopes to install directors who will improve transparency, tighten governance and narrow the gap between share price and BNB-backed NAV, potentially benefiting all shareholders if successful.

Q. How big is BNC’s BNB treasury and why does it matter?

BNC has positioned itself as the world’s largest publicly traded BNB treasury, having purchased hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of BNB following a major PIPE raise in 2025. That makes BNC a bellwether for how traditional capital markets value on-chain treasuries and how willing investors are to trust a BNB-focused corporate treasury as a long-term vehicle for exposure to the BNB ecosystem.

Q. What does this coup attempt mean for the BNB price?

The coup itself does not change the fundamentals of BNB’s protocol or usage, but it introduces governance uncertainty around one of its largest institutional treasuries. Some reports have observed heightened volatility and short-term price dips in BNB around the time Changpeng Zhao-backed YZiLabs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC, as traders reassess how concentrated control and public perception might affect demand, liquidity and future regulatory scrutiny. Over the longer term, the impact will depend on whether the fight ultimately strengthens or weakens confidence in BNB-linked institutions.

Q. What should investors watch for as the situation develops?

Investors following this story should pay close attention to the progress of the consent solicitation, any public responses or counterproposals from BNC’s board, and any updated data on the size, cost basis and management of BNC’s BNB treasury. They should also watch how often and how clearly the company reports NAV, how it addresses concerns raised by YZi Labs, and whether regulators show any interest in the dispute. All of these factors will influence whether the fact that Chang peng Zhao-backed YZi Labs launches boardroom coup at BNB treasury firm BNC turns into a value-unlocking turning point or a prolonged source of uncertainty and discount.