War crisis presents historic occasion for cryptocurrency adoption

At this point, claiming Putin has done the unexpected is among the grossest of understatements. The Russia-Ukraine crisis has shocked the world.

Since Russia’s invasion, the West has responded by imposing strict sanctions, including blocking Russia from the SWIFT payments network. This move could potentially cripple Russia’s economy, which explains why the ruble plummeted 30%. Over the weekend, Russians were pictured rushing to withdraw their funds from banks.

Are you looking for fast-news, hot-tips and market analysis?

Sign-up for the Invezz newsletter, today.

Invezz shares exclusive commentary on the Russia-Ukraine crisis by Brian Pasfield, CTO at Fringe Finance.

Crypto donations have topped $11M

According to Brian Pasfield, the past weekend was a historic moment for cryptocurrency adoption. Ukraine posted an official plea for cryptocurrency donations on Twitter. Although the tweet drew skepticism from Vitalik Buterin and others, donations poured in once it was confirmed as legitimate.

They have already topped $11 million, and that doesn’t factor for the various other crypto initiatives that have been organized to raise funds.

The power of borderless currencies

Brian Pasfield points out that the crisis has highlighted two extremes: a nation state appears to be falling apart due to economic restrictions, while another receives support worldwide from cryptocurrency enthusiasts.

The rush to send funds to Ukraine highlights the power of borderless currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum and serves as a reminder of the importance of non-custodial solutions like DeFi.

Those fleeing Ukraine need only a Seed Phrase to transport their Bitcoin (BTC/USD) or Ethereum (ETH/USD). Ukraine’s move to ask for crypto donations is also a major development in global adoption of the asset class.

Adoption will grow over time

Although the full impact of the conflict remains to be seen, we know that these events will have a major impact on the world and the cryptocurrency space. They highlight crypto’s key value proposition in times of crisis and show why adoption will grow over time. In the height of the bull run, it’s easy to forget that Bitcoin, crypto, and DeFi wasn’t created to make people rich. It was created to set them free.

About Brian Pasfield

Brian Pasfield is a business, information systems and services professional with substantial engineering background. He has over a decade of experience in delivering technically-complex projects with focus on blockchain, cryptocurrency, FinTech, and DeFi and has worked with industry blockchain bodies to lobby for legislation.