Dubai Hosts Binance Blockchain Week 2025: Richard Teng Charts Growth as Yi He Steps In as Co-CEO
Dubai just became the epicenter of crypto's future—and Binance is making sure everyone knows it.
Leadership Shuffle at the Top
Richard Teng took the stage, not just to host, but to project dominance. He pointed to user numbers that keep climbing and trading volumes that defy the skeptics. The message was clear: regulatory hurdles? Just speed bumps on the road to global adoption. Meanwhile, Yi He's formal ascension to Co-CEO wasn't a quiet affair—it's a strategic doubling down on the exchange's founding vision, now backed by the muscle of an established empire.
The Dubai Decree
Choosing Dubai for Blockchain Week 2025 was a masterstroke in political theater. It's a direct nod to the emirate's aggressive courtship of crypto firms, a stark contrast to the regulatory fog elsewhere. The event itself was a showcase of raw infrastructure—new chains, developer tools, and partnerships rolled out with the precision of a product launch, not a conference. It felt less like a meet-up and more like a coronation in the world's new financial sandbox.
Growth, But Make It Institutional
Teng's growth narrative was meticulously crafted. He talked volumes, assets, and compliance wins, the kind of metrics that make traditional finance VPs nod slowly. The subtext screamed maturity, a deliberate pivot from the wild west days to something resembling a respectable, if wildly profitable, global bank. A cynic might say they've mastered the art of selling shovels in a gold rush they helped start—and now they're buying the mine.
The real story isn't the party in the desert. It's the blueprint being unveiled: a fully-integrated crypto ecosystem, from exchange to venture arm to chain, all under one evolving brand. The co-CEO structure solidifies this, dividing the throne between growth and vision. One ensures the machine runs flawlessly today; the other is betting on the protocols that will run the world tomorrow. Forget trading memecoins; this is about building the rails.
So, Dubai gets the glamour, the industry gets a show of force, and Binance gets to write the next chapter on its own terms. The traditional finance crowd watching from New York and London might scoff at the glitter, but their spreadsheets are starting to tell a different story—one where the future of markets is being coded in real-time, far from their hallowed trading floors.
Stablecoins Lead a Record Year for the Industry
Teng dedicated a huge portion of his keynote to the rapid expansion of stablecoins, calling them one of crypto’s “killer applications.”
He reported that:
- Global stablecoin market capitalization surged nearly 50% this year.
- Wallets holding stablecoins also rose 50% to reach 130 million.
- Daily stablecoin transaction volume has surpassed Visa, a milestone “unimaginable just a few years ago.”
- Stablecoin payment volume now exceeds $10 billion daily, underscoring crypto’s evolution into a global financial infrastructure layer.
Regulatory clarity, including progress in the U.S., has been a major catalyst for this adoption, Teng noted. He adds that emerging markets such as Bhutan, which launched the world’s first nationwide crypto payments system using Binance Pay, as examples of forward-looking digital transformation.
Binance Growth, Security Focus and Institutional Momentum
Teng revealed that Binance now serves close to 300 million users worldwide, while Binance Pay merchants have jumped from 12,000 to nearly 21 million in a single year. The platform has processed more than $272 billion in transactions through Binance Pay alone.
He also highlighted deeper institutional participation, pointing to partnerships with firms such as BlackRock and Franklin Templeton as evidence of a maturing market.
User protection remains the company’s “central priority,” Teng said, announcing that Binance prevented almost $7 billionin potential scams in 2025, safeguarding an estimated 9 million users.
Teng also outlined new AI-driven initiatives aimed at simplifying trading and improving user experience, and unveiled Binance Junior, a supervised app designed for users aged 6–17 to learn digital finance responsibly.
Yi He Appointed Co-CEO, Strengthening Binance Leadership
In one of the event’s most significant announcements, Teng named Binance Co-Founder Yi He as the company’s new Co-CEO.
He described Yi He as a “driving force since day one,” credited for shaping Binance’s culture, vision, and user-centric approach. Her appointment, he said, reflects the natural evolution of her leadership and the company’s commitment to scaling toward its mission of reaching 1 billion users.
#Binance #BinanceBlockchainWeek
Breaking news …
Binance confirms a major leadership move: Co-founder Yi He has been appointed Co-CEO, sharing the top role with Richard Teng.
The opening concluded with Teng welcoming UAE AI Minister H.E. Omar Sultan Al Olama to expand on the country’s forward-looking digital strategy.
