France’s Minister of State for the Digital Sector, Cédric O, has said he is open to cooperating with cryptocurrency platforms to enable crypto donations for the reconstruction of the Notre Dame cathedral. The news was reported by Bloomberg on April 17. The medieval cathedral suffered a blaze on April 15 that nearly destroyed the world-renowned landmark. Within just two days, donations for the monument’s reconstruction are reportedly approaching 900 million euros (over $1 billion). Cédric O — whose ministry works under the aegis of France’s Minister of Economy and Finance, Bruno Le Maire — noted that the government’s newly-launched website …

Major global crypto exchange Binance has launched a crypto donation program to support the reconstruction of the Notre Dame cathedral, the firm tweeted on April 16. Binance has initiated a donation program “Rebuild Notre-Dame,” calling the crypto community to support their campaign to restore the medieval cathedral that suffered “colossal damages” from a major fire that nearly destroyed the landmark on April 15. In the post accompanying the new crypto-fundraising channel, Binance stated that the recent event was a “great moment of loss for culture, arts, and history shared by all humankind.” The exchange launched the new donation channel on …

BlockShow, an international blockchain event powered by Cointelegraph, has started a campaign to raise cryptocurrency for the Notre Dame cathedral reconstruction. The news was announced on BlockShow’s official Twitter account on April 16. In the tweet, the team behind BlockShow revealed that it has initiated a fundraising campaign for the Notre Dame reconstruction following the devastating fire that engulfed the cathedral yesterday, April 15. The BlockShow team posted two digital currency wallet addresses where everyone interested can transfer donations in both bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH), as well as a link to the Foundations Du Patrimoine, which is raising donations …

Tron and BitTorrent CEO Justin Sun has donated $1.5 million to the Hupan University established by Alibaba’s co-founder Jack Ma, according to a press release shared with Cointelegraph on April 8. The Hupan University was launched in 2015 by Ma in a bid to help entrepreneurs and business owners learn core business skills needed for further development and promotion in the Chinese market. Sun’s contribution will purportedly support the next class of 41 students from 14 industries, with about half representing the Internet sector and half the traditional sector. Commenting on the importance of the university to professional development, Sun …

Chris Larsen, co-founder of San Francisco-based technology company Ripple, and his wife Lyna Lam have donated $25 million in XRP to a university in California, according to an official announcement on April 5. Larsen and Lam contributed $25 million worth of XRP tokens to San Francisco State University’s (SFSU) College of Business through RippleWorks, a private foundation that provides practical support to promising social entrepreneurs. The university will direct the funds to support students studying global entrepreneurial and fintech ecosystems. According to SFSU, the donation is the largest single contribution made in cryptocurrency to a university in the United States. …

The charity arm of the world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance, has launched its pilot blockchain-based lunch program in African schools, according to a blog post on Feb. 21. Binance Charity Foundation (BCF) has rolled out its charity campaign “Lunch for Children” in the capital of Uganda, Kampala. According to the program, the organization is set to provide two meals a day during the full year of 2019 to more than 200 students and school staff. The recently launched pilot in Uganda is a part of a larger campaign by Binance that intends to benefit one million students in schools across …

The Blockchain Charity Foundation (BCF), a social project of the world’s largest crypto exchange Binance, has introduced its blockchain-powered donation platform, Binance Blog revealed Friday, Oct. 26. The donation project was announced Wednesday, Oct. 24, during the World Investment Forum organized by the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva, Switzerland. At the forum, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao — also known as CZ — took part in the Blockchains for Sustainable Development session. He said that Binance will cover all operational fees on the new BCF blockchain charity website, adding that all donations will go directly to its …

The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance has released a report on crypto donations to provide relief for West Japan following devastating floods in mid-July, according to a blog post published Oct. 24. From late June to mid-July, record downpours in southwestern Japan caused floods and landslides, wherein over 8 million people were advised to evacuate across 23 prefectures, and 225 people were confirmed dead across 15 prefectures. The floods damaged around 17,000 houses. Binance subsequently called for donations in digital currency from individuals and industry players to help residents affected by the heavy downpours. Per the post, the exchange managed …

California’s campaign regulator has recently banned Bitcoin (BTC) from political donations, the Associated Press reports Friday, September 21. In August, the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) had considered allowing donations in cryptocurrencies. The watchdog planned to discuss the use of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for political contributions and discuss their adoption. The FPPC then held a vote on donations of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin on Thursday, September 20. According to the AP, the members voted 3-1 for the ban, noting that the origin of cryptocurrencies is hard to track and raises questions about transparency. The U.S. Federal Elections Commission generally allows …

Nonprofit organization the Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) began accepting cryptocurrency donations June 18, opening its doors to Bitcoin and four altcoins. FPF, which formed in 2012, aims to support and protect free speech in the media, as well as campaign through whistleblower projects and raise awareness of threats to media publications. We are excited to launch a cryptocurrency donation page for @FreedomofPress, where we can now accept Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Zcash to support press freedom. https://t.co/P8q6aEZJ14 — Freedom of the Press (@FreedomofPress) June 18, 2018 “Your support enables us to protect journalists and whistleblowers worldwide, …

A UK mosque has broken with opinion and opted to accept cryptocurrency donations for this year’s Ramadan period, local media report this week. The Shacklewell Lane Mosque in Dalston, East London, also known as Masjid Ramadan, partnered with local Blockchain startup Combo Innovation to set up a Bitcoin and Ethereum wallet for the Ramadan practice of Zakat, or almsgiving. The UK’s only Turkish-owned mosque, Shacklewell Lane is going against the rulings of various Islamic scholars and the Turkish government, who previously determined cryptocurrency to be “incompatible” with Islam. Interpretations are far from unanimous, however, with other sources suggesting cryptocurrency is …

Democratic congressional candidate Brian Forde has been targeted by anti-crypto political advertising for accepting Bitcoin (BTC) donations to his campaign, VICE reported Tuesday, May 22. Forde’s rival Dave Min, who is also running for the Democratic nomination for the upcoming congressional elections in California, circulated an ad suggesting that Forde’s donors are “Bitcoin speculators that oppose cracking down on drug deals and human trafficking.” In correspondence with VICE, Forde responded to the ad’s claims, saying: “These comments about my supporters are sensationalist, wildly inaccurate, and in line with my opponent’s lack of understanding of the technology. If they were speculating …