Ukraine Crypto Donations
Ukraine’s government has raised more than $10 million in cryptocurrency donations, turning to an unlikely crowdfunding method to help it get through a brutal invasion from Russia.
The official Twitter account of the Ukrainian government on Saturday posted addresses for two crypto wallets, one accepting only Bitcoin and the other taking Ether and Tether, a token that tracks the value of the U.S. dollar.
As of Sunday, those wallets have attracted $10.2 million worth of crypto, according to research from blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. That’s on top of the millions in digital currency donated to nongovernmental organizations supporting the Ukrainian military.
About $1.86 million of the money donated to Ukraine’s government was generated through the sale of a non-fungible token, or NFT, originally intended to raise funds for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, Elliptic said.
The Ukrainian Digital Ministry says the latest call for donations is to “help Ukraine armed forces” but would not elaborate on how the money would be spent.
Elliptic founder Tom Robinson told the BBC: “Whereas some crowdfunding and payments companies have refused to allow donations to be made to groups supporting the Ukrainian military, cryptocurrencies have emerged as a powerful alternative.”
Cryptocurrency fund raising is becoming an increasingly prominent part of modern conflicts around the world.
On Friday, fundraising platform Patreon announced that it had suspended the donation page for “Come Back Alive”, a Ukrainian NGO that has been raising money for Ukrainian forces in conflict zones since 2014.
What more is in store for Russia?
I am not a financial advisor and my comments should never be taken as financial advice. Investments come with risk, so always do your research and analysis beforehand.