quadruple its prior record of $69 million in
2017, according to a company spokesperson.
And the cryptocurrency donation platform
Engiven said last month it accepted what
it called the largest single Bitcoin donation
known to date: a $10 million Bitcoin gift to an
undisclosed faith-based organization.
Many large charities and international aid
agencies, like The American Red Cross and Save
the Children, have set up mechanisms to accept
cryptocurrencies or are using platforms that
help them convert them into cash right away.
But smaller organizations — who make up the
vast majority of registered nonprofits in the
country — are attempting to figure out how to
accept these currencies, or if it even makes sense
for them to do so, said Rick Cohen, the chief
communications and operating officer at the
National Council on Nonprofits.
“For a lot of organizations, it feels a little bit scary
because it’s not the contribution of dollars that
they’re used to,” Cohen said.
“It’s not something that’s free and easy” to set
up, he said. “And they need to figure out if there’s
even demand from their current donors to be
able to do it.”
The global humanitarian organization Action
Against Hunger started accepting cryptocurrency
donations last year after a group of donors
approached them about taking the assets,
said Aron Flasher, who manages corporate
partnerships for the organization. Since then, he
says they’ve raised more than $1 million from
virtual currencies.
“We feel like we’ve brought our issues to a very
diverse cohort of supporters that we may not be