Amid the ongoing military invasion by Russia, the
Ukrainian government has been seeking support from across the world to defend
itself against military action.

Adopting an unlikely crowdfunding method, Ukraine’s
government has raised more than $10 million in cryptocurrency donations,
according to a report by CNBC.

Also Read | On Russia-Ukraine conflict: Dalai Lama says war is outdated, calls for dialogue

On Saturday, the Ukrainian government had posted
addresses for two crypto wallets on its official Twitter account. One wallet accepts
only bitcoin and the other takes ether and tether.

Those crypto wallets have received over $10 million worth
of crypto donations, according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. This is
on top of the millions of digital currency donated to non-governmental
organizations supporting the Ukrainian military.

Also Read | Ruble drops 26% after SWIFT sanctions against Russia over Ukraine invasion

According to Elliptic, an estimated $1.86 million of the
money donated to the Ukrainian government came from the sale of an NFT that was
originally intended to raise funds for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

Another example of Ukraine turning to cryptos for funds
is the NGO ‘Come Back Alive’, which supplied equipment to the Ukrainian
military and has been receiving crypto donations since 2018. Since the
beginning of Russia’s invasion last week, it has raised millions of dollars
worth of digital currency, according to CNBC.

Also Read | Indian ministers may travel to Ukraine to coordinate evacuation: Sources

Come Back Alive’s Patreon fundraising page was suspended
this week, with the company saying it “does not allow any campaigns involved in
violence or purchasing of military equipment.” Patreon allows users to receive
a monthly income through paid subscriptions.

Total crypto donations to the Ukrainian government and
NGOs supporting the military now stand at $16.7 million, as per the analytics
firm Elliptic.

Also Read | Kyiv reports 352 Ukraine civilians, 3,500 Russian troops killed in war: 7 major updates

Initially, the Ukrainian military could not receive
donations in digital currencies as they were not legally recognized the
government now appears to have relaxed rules to allow the military to access
the funds.

On Sunday, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister
of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov called on major crypto exchanged to
block payments to Russian users.

On Saturday, the US, European Union and Canada had agreed
to cut certain Russian banks from SWIFT, the international interbank messaging
system. They also announced to prevent Russia’s central bank from deploying its
international reserves in ways that may undermine sanctions.