The crypto community has thrown its weight behind the Ukraine army with bitcoin donations. Data from Elliptic, a blockchain analytics firm, highlighted that nearly $400,000 in BTC was donated to a Ukrainian non-governmental organization called Come Back Alive. The donations are to support Ukraine’s armed forces.
Elliptic says this trend has been recorded in recent weeks in Ukrainian NGOs. The cryptocurrencies will help equip the Ukrainian army with military equipment, medical supplies, and drones. The crypto donations will help fund the development of a facial recognition app to identify if a person is a Russian spy or mercenary.
Tom Robinson, the chief scientist of Elliptic, acknowledged the fact that cryptocurrency is increasingly being used to crowdfund war. The data analytics firm shared that more than $1 million has been raised by volunteer groups and NGOs in cryptocurrency. It should be noted that donations are increasing as Russia launches offensive one after another. Elliptic highlighted bitcoin, as popular crypto in donations as it allows organizations and donors to bypass financial institutions that might hurdle or block payments to Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Cyber Alliance has recorded nearly $100,000 donations in bitcoin, litecoin, ether, and an assortment of stable coins. Elliptic said that the Alliance activists, since 2016, have engaged in cyberattacks against Russian targets. Moreover, pro-Russian separatists have also been raising crypto funds.
Boaz Sobrado, a data analyst, revealed that Russian officials were not shutting off opposition bank accounts as they feared a rejuvenated push into crypto fundraising. And they know this is challenging as it’s hard to monitor. Over the past few years, Russia has been hit by crypto fundraising for opposition leader Alexei Navalny and for WikiLeaks as well.
