In the wake of ongoing fluctuations in the global markets amid Russia-Ukraine crisis, Bitcoin lingered close to $40,000 on Sunday, gaining 1.4% during the last 24 hours and traded at $39,513.14, according to CoinGecko. The global cryptocurrency market capitalization today stood at $1.85 trillion, a 1.5% change in the last 24 hours, CoinGecko reported.
While Ethereum gained 1.2% at $2,658.07, as one of the highly donated cryptocurrencies received by the war-torn country Ukraine. Dogecoin shot up 1.8% at $0.125064, while Shiba Inu gained 0.6% at $0.00002426. Polygon gained 0.7% in the last 24 hours at $1.49.
Meanwhile, Ukraine deputy minister of Digital Transformation Alex Bornyakov said the country has already spent $15 million of the donations it received in cryptocurrencies on military supplies, including bulletproof vests that were delivered Friday. The Ukrainian government anticipates doubling the $50 million of crypto donated so far in the next two or three days, Bornyakov said Friday in an Zoom interview from an undisclosed location inside Ukraine. Most of the donations have been in Bitcoin and Ether.
The 250-person ministry has managed to find suppliers in Europe and the U.S. for everything from the vests to food packages to bandages and night-vision devices for army within two days after Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, Bornyakov said. About 40% of the suppliers are willing to take crypto. The rest are typically paid with crypto converted into euros and dollars, he said.
While many companies and crypto startup founders have donated money, “most donations come from people,” Bornyakov said, while noting that air-raid sirens occasionally require him to run into a bomb shelter. The ministry has also received donations in Tether, Polkadot and Solana, he said. It also received hundreds of NFTs, including a valuable CryptoPunk.
The ministry was formed two years ago, and was working to develop Ukraine’s information-technology services industry, provide high-speed internet access throughout the country and to move all government services online. Most of the ministry’s team is under 35 years old, and most are working remotely, from inside or outside the country, Bornyakov said. Before joining the ministry, Bornyakov studied public administration at Columbia University in New York and also founded several startups, including an ad-technology provider and a startup investment fund.
(With inputs from agencies)
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