Crypto dudes known by their initials are having a rough go of it lately.

Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency trading platform, is stepping down from his role and pleading guilty to money laundering, according to US court documents released to the public yesterday. Binance Coin fell 6% following the news, sparking a wave of drops across crypto.

Zhao’s fall is part of a settlement between Binance and the DOJ, which alleges that Binance enabled people in sanctioned countries, like Iran and Russia, to trade on the platform, violating US regulations against money laundering. Binance will reportedly pay a $4.3 billion fine but will stay open for business.

The man behind the curtain: Zhao, better known by his initials, “CZ,” founded Binance in 2017 and oversaw the company as it completed a meteoric rise to the top of the crypto world, competing with the other now-infamous crypto guy Sam Bankman-Fried, often on X.

Karma is a bit-coin

If SBF has a burn book, CZ is probably on page one. SBF blamed his rival for the downfall of FTX, since the bank run that triggered FTX’s bankruptcy started because of a tweet from CZ saying he was going to dump all of his FTX token.

Binance was a bit like your friend who stays at the party after the cops come and drinks the beer that’s left: The crypto exchange became responsible for two-thirds of crypto trading on global exchanges—making it, in some experts' opinions, too big to fail. CZ probably won’t face jail time, since he’s based in the UAE, with whom the US does not have an extradition agreement.

It’s a precarious time to be involved in digital currency trading. Binance is facing a different lawsuit from the SEC that alleges the company artificially inflated its US trading volume and offered crypto futures without registering as a futures commodity merchant. On Monday, the SEC hit Kraken—another one of the world’s largest cryptocurrencies—with a similar lawsuit.—CC

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Israel approved a hostage deal with Hamas. Israel’s top Cabinet voted on Tuesday to accept a deal that will reportedly see Hamas free about 50 hostages—all women and children, including three Americans—as part of a four-day ceasefire. Israel said it would extend the pause in fighting for an extra day for every 10 additional hostages released. In exchange, Israel will reportedly release some Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. Israel will also allow 300 aid trucks per day to enter Gaza from Egypt. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had urged the government to accept the deal while vowing that the war would continue after the hostages are secured. The talks were brokered by mediators in Qatar, where Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh lives.

Nvidia smashed revenue expectations. The good times keep rolling for the chipmaker. Q3 revenue increased 206% year over year to $18.1 million, topping Wall Street’s estimates of about $16.2 billion. The company’s stock has more than tripled amid the AI boom this year, accounting for a big part of the S&P 500’s tech-fueled rise. And yet, shares ticked down from record highs in after-hours trading on Tuesday after Nvidia tempered expectations for Q4 due to new restrictions on chip exports to China.

Prepare for messy Thanksgiving travel. A “wave of inclement weather through the eastern two-thirds of the country” could throw travel into chaos this week, according to the Weather Prediction Center. TSA predicts 30 million people will fly over the holiday, an 11.5% increase from last year, putting a strain on a US aviation system struggling to keep up with demand. One positive? Thanksgiving gas prices could be the cheapest they’ve been since 2020. Whether you’re flying, driving, taking the train, or awaiting the arrival of those who are, here are some tips to get through the next few days with minimal stress.

If Kim Kardashian is going to invest in anything, it’s going to be a way more expensive version of something that already exists. Her investment firm Skky Partners, which she co-founded last year with private equity veteran Jay Sammons, has made its first deal: acquiring a minority stake in bougie condiment maker Truff.

Details weren’t disclosed, but it’s kind of a match made in heaven for the sauce company, which makes truffle-based mayo, hot sauce, and pasta sauce.

• Truff, like so much of Kardashian’s business endeavors (and life tbh), has ridden its direct-to-consumer, viral marketing campaigns to stardom.
• The brand is now available in Whole Foods, Target, and Publix and has partnered with big names like Hidden Valley, Popeyes, and Taco Bell.

The deal will add Skky managing director David Brisske to Truff’s board, as well as Mark Ramadan, who knows how the sauce-age is made as the former CEO of condiment king Sir Kensington’s, which sold to Unilever in 2017 for $140 million.

Skky must really believe in the longevity of truffle oil hype. Axios editor Dan Primack noted that Skky’s fund hasn’t raised money for its first buyout fund yet, so the investment was likely personally funded by Kardashian and Sammons.—MM

Hollywood hopes you’ll remember that the holiday is just as much about the circus as it is about the bread. This year’s Thanksgiving is an even bigger deal for the industry than usual, as it needs big box-office returns to help it recover from the devastating writers and actors strikes.

Today’s premieres

Maestro: Bradley Cooper directs and stars as the Jewish American conductor Leonard Bernstein in a much-awaited chronicle of the maestro’s tumultuous marriage to Costa Rican Broadway actress Felicia Montealegre, played by Carey Mulligan.

Napoleon: The sweeping biopic, directed by Ridley Scott, stars Joaquin Phoenix as the French statesman/megalomaniac. The epic battle scenes, which required hundreds of extras, put the total cost at $200 million—making the movie something of a historical event itself. 

Wish: The Disney animation behemoth wishes to rake in $45–$50 million by the end of the weekend with this musical fantasy about a young girl who must save the day with the help of a wishing star that so frequently appears in the Disney cinematic universe.

Good Burger 2: Nickelodeon is releasing a sequel to the original cult buddy comedy that won the hearts of millennial kids 26 years ago. The now-grownup slacker duo Dexter and Ed (played by Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell) are again working at the same burger joint and pulling shenanigans, like the good old times.

Amazon’s Black Friday NFL debut: For the first time in US history, you can stream live football instead of tackling people at the mall the day after Thanksgiving. The Miami Dolphins vs. New York Jets will stream on Amazon Prime Video on Black Friday—prepare to see ads with QR codes for Amazon products.—SK

Quote: “It’s Robbie.”

That’s Banksy’s first name, according to, well, Banksy, in a recently unearthed BBC interview from 2003. The mysterious British street artist’s name has long been rumored to be some variation of Robert or Robin, but has never been confirmed until now. The interview—one of the earliest known recordings of Banksy’s voice—also includes a discussion of the philosophy behind his subversive graffiti. “I’m not here to apologize for it,” he said. “It’s a quicker way of making your point, right?”

Stat: We have bad news for purveyors of whale sounds—Spotify is making it harder for you to make money. The music streaming company announced that it will drive an additional $1 billion to artists on its platform by reining in attempts to game its royalty system with fraudulent streams and “noise content” like static and animal calls. As part of the new policy, Spotify will also stop payments to songs with fewer than 1,000 streams. Those only account for 0.5% of all songs on the service, but Spotify says that, in aggregate, they generate tens of millions of dollars in annual royalty payments that’ll now be redirected to hardworking artists who do more than just exploit the majesty of whale song.

Read: How Green Wednesday became the Black Friday of cannabis. (Retail Brew)

Read: Rejoice, for NPR’s annual Books We Love list is out.

Communicate: This quiz will tell you if you talk most like a zoomer, millennial, Gen Xer, or boomer at work.

Stream: Inform your friends who still haven’t watched The Bear that Hulu is only $1 per month if you sign up between now and Nov. 28.

Organize: How to feng shui your fridge to waste less food.

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