Ukraine's 'Father of Crypto' Says the Crypto Scene Has Changed Due to War

Michael Chobanian, the founder of KUNA, spoke on the state of crypto before and after the war.

He said that crypto has become Ukraine's most valued currency.

Instead of entering the army, Michael worked for the government as a crypto banker.

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia is a disaster that will be remembered for Russia's harshness, lack of mercy, and terrible methods. However, certain advantages came to the world of crypto in the form of acceptance amid the most awful of circumstances.

Michael Chobanian, the founder of Ukraine's largest crypto exchange, KUNA, emphasized how dramatically the crypto industry has altered in the previous month in an interview with Bloomberg.

Ukraine and crypto

For more than eight years, Michael has been a proponent of all things crypto. Since becoming a full-time crypto actor in 2013, Michael has had to deal with government raids and other issues.

And, in order to defend crypto enterprises, he has served as President of the Blockchain Association of Ukraine. The most dramatic developments in Ukraine's crypto space, on the other hand, occurred only at the start of the conflict.

Before the conflict, KUNA was used to processing $1 million to $4 million in volume every day, according to Michael. But, since February 24, a lot has changed, and crypto has emerged as a critical component of the war effort.

The once-dominant payment methods of USD and cash have now become obsolete.

"No one wants cash because you can't really transport it outside of the nation and you can't really store it safely." Crypto is becoming the most valued type of currency in Ukraine. Everyone wants crypto because it is the quickest, most flexible, simplest, and least bureaucratic method of storing and spending money. "In Ukraine, crypto is the new king of money." The amount of crypto donations received by Ukraine (Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.) has supported the war effort with over 5,500 bulletproof vests, 500 helmets, night-vision goggles, and medication.

As a result, instead of entering the army, Michael became a government crypto banker. "I'm in charge of collecting, fundraising, and storing crypto, as well as trading crypto for crypto and crypto for fiat, creating bank accounts for intermediaries or the government, and then buying anything the Ministry of Defense requires," he explained. We also locate vendors ready to offer us humanitarian items, such as helmets or protective jackets, in exchange for crypto. So I'm in head of this government-run virtual crypto fund."

In the last month, the Crypto Efforts Ukraine has gathered over $100 million in crypto donations to fund the battle effort. This covers things like bitcoin contributions and NFT sales, among other things.

In addition, the Ukrainian government has established the NFT War Museum, the revenues of which will be used to assist the administration.

On the other side, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has been traveling throughout the world, pleading for assistance in evading Western sanctions.

Sergei stated today during a visit to India that India and Russia are friends, praising the country's non-biased viewpoints, and that in the future, "it is absolutely clear that more and more transactions will be done through this system using national currencies, bypassing the dollar, euro, and other currencies."