Charity: water opens Bitcoin donations drive

Charity: water, which provides clean water to developing countries, has launched the Bitcoin Water Trust to accept donations in Bitcoin.

More than 65 people have donated using the new method. Among the philanthropists are Barry Silbert, founder of Digital Currency Group, investor Bill Miller, and professional skateboarder Tony Hawk.

Gemini founders, the Winklevoss twins, have pledged to double the donations once they reach 50 BTC.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin Water Trust had attracted 22.12 BTC (about $800,000 at the exchange rate at the time of writing). The amount will provide clean water for more than 16,000 people. The fund will hold digital gold at least until January 2025.

Charity: water founder and chief Scott Harrison told Decrypt that the charity expects Bitcoin to rise in value, enabling water for even more people.

There is time to weather another halving around May 2024, and we hope for the price of Bitcoin to rise by 2025,

the executive added.

Harrison expects that funds raised in Bitcoin alone will exceed $1 billion, providing clean water for more than 20 million people.

Since its launch in 2006, charity: water has received $550 million in donations. In 2014 the organization began accepting Bitcoin without establishing a fund and attracted 569 BTC.

According to Harrison, they earned ‘a mere’ $4.4 million from selling the first cryptocurrency. At the time of writing, 569 BTC were worth more than $20 million.

In May 2021, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania received an anonymous $5 million Bitcoin donation.

In February, the largest hospital on the Cape Cod peninsula in Massachusetts received about $800,000 in digital gold.

In January, the United States launched a cryptocurrency charitable fund to fight cancer.

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