Vitalik Buterin Sends ETH 700 to War-Scarred Ukraine as Crypto Donations Reach $133 Million

The donation from Ethereum’s co-founder to Ukraine was facilitated without much fanfare.

By Radhika Parashar | Updated: 8 April 2022 15:33 IST

Vitalik Buterin Sends ETH 700 to War-Scarred Ukraine as Crypto Donations Reach $133 Million

Photo Credit: Devcon 2018

Buterin has reportedly donated $2.5 million to Ukraine-centric ‘Unchain’ initiative as well

Highlights

No official announcement by Buterin on ETH donations to Ukraine
Ukrainian authorities express gratitude to Buterin
Russia and Ukraine continue to be at war

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has donated 700 Ether coins to Ukraine, which has been in war with Russia since February 24. The Aid For Ukraine, a crypto community initiative gathering and tracking donations in the war revealed the development, otherwise Buterin had remained tight-lipped about his gesture. Presently, ETH 700 amounts to nearly $2.5 million (roughly Rs. 19 crore). Earlier this month, the Russian-born Canadian programmer had also wired the same amount of money to another Ukraine-focussed charity project called ‘Unchain'.

“Thanks for your enormous help, Vitalik, and thank you for creating Ethereum,” Aid For Ukraine tweeted.

.@VitalikButerin donated almost $2.5M in $ETH to @_AidForUkraine 2 days ago, and didn't say a word! He's also donated $2.5M to @Unchainfund.

Thanks for your enormous help, Vitalik, and thank you for creating @ethereum! The #Ethereum community is :blue_heart::yellow_heart: pic.twitter.com/HuvDcTM40e
— Aid For Ukraine :flag-ua: (@_AidForUkraine) April 6, 2022

Alex Bornyakov, Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation penned a heartfelt note for Ethereum's 28-year-old creator, thanking him for “standing with Ukraine”.

I couldn't be more grateful for every crypto donation to our lifesaving initiative @_AidForUkraine. It really helps to strength our country and protect the democratic values. Special thanks to @VitalikButerin for standing with @Ukraine :flag-ua:. https://t.co/4eEe9hKdFk
— Alex Bornyakov (@abornyakov) April 6, 2022

As per CoinTelegraph, Ukraine has collected around $133 million (roughly Rs. 1,010 crore) in crypto donations.

On March 17, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a virtual assets bill into law to legalise cryptocurrencies in the country. Crypto exchanges and companies dealing in digital assets must register with the government to operate legally in Ukraine, and banks are allowed to open accounts for crypto companies.

Russia Looking to Legalise Crypto Mining from Home

The crypto capital is being used to buy basic essentials like food and fuel by Ukrainian authorities. Crypto assets are also being used to buy military equipment like bullet-proof vests and night vision goggles for the Ukrainian armed forces.

Earlier last month, Joseph Lubin, Ethereum co-founder alongside Buterin had said that the crypto asset class can be viewed as among Ukraine's best weapons against Russia.

Russia May Legalise Crypto Mining, Energy Authority Calls for Regulation

According to Lubin, the ongoing geopolitical war in Eastern Europe is becoming a “point of no return” for the global market's integration of cryptocurrencies.

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Further reading: Cryptocurrency, Vitalik Buterin, Russia, Ukraine, Russia Ukraine War, Crypto Donations

Radhika Parashar

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Radhika Parashar is a senior correspondent for Gadgets 360. She has been reporting on tech and telecom for the last three years now and will be focussing on writing about all things crypto. Besides this, she is a major sitcom nerd and often replies in Chandler Bing and Michael Scott references. For tips or queries you could reach out to her at RadhikaP@ndtv.com. More