Former Binance CEO Chanpen Zhao (CZ) has voiced skepticism regarding plans by well-known crypto skeptic Peter Schiff to launch a tokenized gold product. Schiff has long advocated that gold is the only asset truly worth bringing onto the blockchain.
Schiff shared his intentions during a podcast with Michael Jerome, better known as ThreadGuy:
“Gold offers real stability because it retains its value. Ideally, the only asset worth moving onto the blockchain is gold,” he said.
This isn’t the first time Schiff has promoted such ideas. In July 2025, he commented on a joint venture between Streamex and BioSig Technologies Inc., which involved creating a $1.1 billion gold-backed treasury.
When asked by a listener about supporting tokenized gold while criticizing Bitcoin, Schiff responded:
“Bitcoin wasn’t necessary. It was only a temporary substitute until something with real intrinsic value took its place.”
How Tokenized Gold Works
Tokenizing gold involves dividing a physical bar into multiple units recorded on a blockchain. These units are issued as tokens that can freely circulate on secondary markets, with each token representing ownership of a portion of the underlying asset.
CZ’s Critique
Zhao expressed doubts about tokenized gold, noting:
“Here’s the obvious truth: insiders understand it, but for others, this can be misleading. Tokenized gold is not the same as on-chain gold. You rely on a third party to return your gold in the future, despite management changes, wars, or other disruptions. It’s essentially a ‘trust me, bro’ token. That’s why gold-backed coins never gained real traction.”
Schiff countered:
“For centuries, people have entrusted their gold to third parties. Brinks has safeguarded gold for over 160 years without losing a single gram. Tokenized gold operates on the same storage principle as stablecoins. Are you against the entire industry because of that?”
As of now, Zhao has not responded to Schiff’s remarks.
Currently, the market includes several gold-backed products, such as the PAXG and XAUT stablecoins issued by Paxos and Tether, respectively. Tether’s XAUT is backed by over seven tons of physical gold stored in Switzerland, and the company plans to further expand in this sector.
