In just a 12 hour period, Bitcoin donations to the Ukrainian army skyrocketed yesterday. According to Elliptic, which sells blockchain analytics tools to crypto platforms and banks, early Thursday totals amassed nearly $400,000.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute mentions that Ukraine’s defense budget is only 10% of Russia’s at $6 billion. Tokens are being donated to Ukrainian nongovernmental organization Come Back Alive, and other volunteer groups, in an effort to pad the Ukrainian armed forces budget as Russia invades.

Come Back Alive was founded in 2014, began collecting crypto payments four years later and has recently seen a boom in bitcoin donations.

Tom Robinson, Elliptic’s Chief Scientist, says, “Cryptocurrency is increasingly being used to crowdfund war, with the tacit approval of governments…”

A portion of funds donated to Come Back Alive were being collected through Patreon, a membership-based platform built for content creators, which is also used for crowdfunding projects.

As of late last night, a visit to the Ukrainian NGO’s Patreon donation page will deliver a message, “This page has been removed.”

Patreon states their Terms of Service were violated by Come Back Alive, “Patreon does not allow funds raised on the platform to be used to support violence or purchasing of military equipment.” An investigation is pending.

Meanwhile, Come Back Alive’s website mentions several donation methods, including a Bitcoin wallet, which has proven to be a popular choice.

With a single anonymous donation of $3 million early this morning, Ukrainian NGO’s have generated $4.1 million in cryptocurrency since the Russian invasion began.

Activists have utilized the donated cryptocurrency for a number of objectives, including providing military weapons, medical supplies, and drones to the Ukrainian army.

Sources believe funds are also being allocated toward the development of a facial recognition tool to determine whether someone is a Russian mercenary or spy.

Carpe crypto,

Matt Insley
Editor Daily Crypto Hunter