Russia has long opposed Ukraine’s move toward European institutions, particularly Nato. Its main demand is for the West to guarantee that Ukraine will not join Nato, a 30-nation defensive alliance. Ukraine has borders with both the EU and Russia, but as a former Soviet republic, it has strong social and cultural ties to Russia, and Russian is widely spoken. As Russia has previously invaded Ukraine, the threat is taken seriously. Now, with the conflict between the two nations rising, crypto donations have also started to soar. According to a survey by blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, Bitcoin donations to Ukrainian civil activists and volunteers increased by 900% from the previous year to more than $570,000 in 2021. The organizations in question arose following the 2014 Maidan revolution, which saw pro-Russian President Victor Yanukovich overthrown. Following that, Russia attacked and annexed the Crimean peninsula, igniting a civil war in Ukraine’s east. Volunteer organizations began assisting Ukrainian military forces and striking pro-Russian insurgents at that time. Bitcoin Donations, In Particular, Have Increased Both groups accept both fiat and crypto donations; however, Bitcoin donations have surged dramatically in the last year, according to Elliptic, because the crypto allows overseas contributors to bypass financial institutions that have barred payments to these organizations. For example, since August 2021, the Bitc...
