What the Ukraine conflict reveals about crypto
Since Russia launched its unprovoked attack on Ukraine in February, crypto has been part of history. The conflict has shown the world the potential and limits of blockchain technology, and has also posed tough moral questions for the crypto community and its critics.
The last example comes via The cableits acclaimed cybersecurity reporter, Andy Greenberg, whose latest dispatch chronicles the challenge of shutting down crypto donations to Russia’s war machine. Greenberg details how, despite sanctions, crypto continues to trickle down to militias and arms dealers, thanks to rogue exchanges in Russia, China and India. Forensic accounting shows that more than $4 million in crypto has flowed in, although the actual figure is likely much higher.
For crypto-haters, this provides further confirmation of their belief that Bitcoin is only useful for fraud and crime – regardless of whether criminal regimes such as Russia do a brisk trade in US dollars, gold and other “respectable” currencies. Meanwhile, tracking the crypto flowing into Russia has produced some unlikely heroes. These include Binance, which has a reputation for working outside the law, but in the case of the Ukraine conflict has supported an investigative team that has helped track illegal donations by monitoring Telegram and the blockchain.
However, the most unexpected, and frankly worrying, element of the Ukraine conflict is the number of prominent figures on crypto-Twitter who are acting as apologists for Vladimir Putin’s barbaric war. In some cases, this has come in the form of urging the West to stop intervening on Ukraine’s side to prevent Putin from unleashing nuclear weapons (an argument that is sound but also wrong given that appeasing Putin would only embolden him and other dictators to engage in nuclear blackmail).
Worse are the crypto-Twitter voices expressing tacit sympathy for Russia and placing the moral blame on the US and UK for supporting Ukraine. It’s hard to know if this is borne of a misguided strain of the libertarian philosophy that defined the ethos of so many early crypto leaders. Or worse, it’s a simple lust for authoritarianism that drives the crypto-loving Putin sympathizers. Whatever the reason, it’s terrifying to see large sections of the crypto community – usually so devoted to the idea of human freedom – taking to Twitter to side with a barbaric and depraved regime that has committed some of the worst war crimes since World War II.
Tomorrow’s newsletter will focus on a less serious topic, but the point here is that Ukraine holds a mirror to the values of the crypto community – and the view is often unflattering.
Jeff John Roberts
[email protected]
@jeffjohnroberts
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