“10 Days of Crypto” is counting down the 10 biggest moments in the history of cryptocurrency donations.
In May 2018, Ashton Kutcher was a guest on the Ellen Degeneres Show. During the show he discussed technology, along with Ellen’s personal charity the Ellen Degeneres Wildlife Fund (part of The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International). As the segment went on, he discussed his interest in investing in technology and startups, and got onto the topic of Ripple, which at the time was the 3rd most valuable cryptocurrency in the world. Then he dropped a bombshell – he was going to donate $4 million to the charity.
This marks a huge moment in the history of not only cryptocurrency donations, but cryptocurrency in general. It exposed millions of viewers of the Ellen DeGeneres show to cryptocurrency in a positive way. Aston briefly explains Ripple and what it does, before opening up an app on his phone, and transferring $4 million USD worth of XRP to the charities account in Rwanda.
“You’re always thinking about everyone else,” Kutcher told DeGeneres. “We wanted to show you that people are thinking about you.”
Rather than using a giant novelty check, that might take days to clear – Kutcher was able to demonstrate how cryptocurrency can be used to donate to nonprofits instantly.
Interestingly, there is currently no way for the fund to accept cryptocurrency donations like Bitcoin or Ethereum on their website. We at The Giving Block are going to have to change that!
