Rise of crypto and Bitcoin risks blowing a hole in Russian sanctions | Business
As the tanks rolled in and the missiles cut through the sky above Ukraine, Mykhailo Fedorov got creative. The country’s deputy prime minister tweeted on February 26: “Stand with the people of Ukraine. Now accepting cryptocurrency donations.” Over the next seven days, more than 100,000 people sent $60 million (£45 million) worth of bitcoin, ethereum and other digital currencies to the addresses Fedorov had posted.
Gavin Wood, the British co-founder of ethereum, sent $5.8 million. Alex Mashinsky, a Ukraine-born entrepreneur behind crypto fund manager Celsius, donated, and also gifted $25 in bitcoin to every user account in Ukraine to help them pay for basic goods and services.
Cryptocurrency’s role will only grow, Mashinsky predicted, as Russian president Vladimir Putin pushes ahead with his attack. “This