Binance, a leading crypto and blockchain infrastructure provider, has committed $10 million minimum to “help the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine” via its Binance Charity Foundation.
As mentioned in the update, the donation will be “split between major intergovernmental organizations and nonprofit organizations already on the ground, including UNICEF, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, iSans and People in Need, to help support displaced children and families in Ukraine and its neighboring countries.”
Binance has also launched a crypto-first donation site, called Ukraine Emergency Relief Fund to “allow people to donate crypto to help provide emergency relief to refugees and children and to support logistics on the ground such as food, fuel and supplies for refugees.” A donation of 16,042 BNB, with the equivalent value of US$6 million, has “already been made by Binance.”
CZ, Founder and CEO of Binance, said:
“Watching this conflict escalate over the past four days has shocked our community to its core. We are proud to have been able to quickly rally our network to provide relief and support on the ground to those in need. This includes helping provide food, fuel, supplies and shelter for Ukrainians, which include countless Binance community members. We are using every resource and governmental channel we have to call on world leaders to end this conflict immediately.”
Binance is also working with a number of local refugee groups who are “actively working to expedite Ukrainians’ passage across the border into safety in two neighboring countries.”
Binance Charity has an ongoing collaboration with UNICEF via its Luxembourg Committee, “having worked together to provide assistance following the Beirut Explosion and to support COVID-19 global vaccination efforts (COVAX).”
Their latest donation will go towards “protecting the welfare of Ukraine’s 7.5 million children. As the conflict escalates so will the needs of the children and their families.” UNICEF’s current actions include pre-positioning of critical supplies, “providing safe drinking water, supporting families on the move, child protection, emergency educational resources and psychosocial support.”
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency is a global organization dedicated “to saving lives, protecting rights and building a better future for people forced to flee their homes because of conflict and persecution.”
UNHCR has been on the ground in Ukraine providing critical relief and shelter to people “forced to flee since 2014.”
With a longstanding presence in the region, field operations across the country and warehouses with prepositioned relief items and shelter kits, UNHCR “continues to stay and deliver humanitarian assistance whenever necessary and possible.”
International Strategic Action Network (iSans) first set up an organization in Poland in 2020 to “take in Belarusan refugees following the Lukashenko regime’s crackdown on democratic protests.”
With their past experience in the region, they are “well established to restart operations to help welcome Ukrainian refugees.”
People in Need is a non-governmental, non-profit organization, with expertise in “supporting refugees that suffer the consequences of war.”
Having an operation in Slovakia opens up “another critical path of exit for people.” PIN’s sister organization in Ukraine will “reactivate its healthcare and food supply centers to help provide assistance to those who may not be able to leave.”
Since its inception in 2018, Binance Charity has reportedly “donated $10 million USD to support projects helping in the wake of global disasters and to tackle complex social and environmental issues.”