A children’s charity, based in the UK, recently announced it has received donations through cryptocurrency amounting to $48,000. The charity is called the Children’s Heart Unit Fund (CHUF) and specializes in cardiac ailments.
Charlotte Campbell, the director of fundraising at the CHUF, revealed that the fund started accepting donations in crypto after the idea was suggested by one of its donators.
Dan Bainbridge, the donor that suggested the idea, also gave the first push by donating $10,000 in Basic Attention Token (BAT). BAT is fully based on the blockchain of Ethereum and its aimed at improving the efficiency of digital advertising. The mentioned token is used to acquire different advertisements or attention-oriented services on the platform.
The charity fund also revealed that it received the donations through The Giving Block, an innovative service that allows non-governmental organizations to accept donations in cryptocurrency.
When asked about his motivation to donate to the charity, Bainbridge shared that he had to undergo a heart operation as a baby, which saved his life. Bainbridge is a creator of a venture capital fund that works with cryptocurrencies – BigBird. He also played an important role in connecting the charity with The Giving Block’s platform.
Alex Willson, one of the co-founders of The Giving Block, has stated that although donations in cryptocurrency are increasingly popular, it is quite unusual to see donations of big amounts from individual donors.
Campbell thinks that CHUF’s decision to open up to cryptocurrency donations has provided them with access to a new base of donators – one they weren’t able to connect with in the past.
The CHUF spends its received donations to provide meals for families of its patients, acquire new medical equipment and give toys to the children. The fund continues to accept donations in Ether, Bitcoin, BAT, LiteCoin, the Gemini Dollar and Zcash.
