UN to offer cryptocurrency aid to Ukraine refugees, questionable rationale,,

[Magpie99]

💭The United Nations has decided to send financial aid to refugees displaced by the war in Ukraine through crypto currency 'USD Coin (USDC); But the reality of the volatile crypto market calls into question its rationale.

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) supports the refugees by providing them with the necessary financial aid to meet their basic living and accommodation expenses. On Thursday, the organization announced that victims of Russia's military aggression in Ukraine will receive financial aid through cryptocurrency. Refugees can collect cash in exchange for crypto currency sent by the organization through the MoneyGram service anywhere in the world.

USDC is known as a 'stable coin'; That is, the valuation of the crypto currency is adjusted to the US dollar. Stablecoins are considered relatively reliable digital currencies due to their support of mainstream currency systems.

Supporters of UNHCR's initiative say that displaced people will receive financial aid more quickly in this process; The risk of misappropriation during fund transfer will be reduced. But many concerned are skeptical about the effectiveness of the process, according to the Washington Post.

Critics say it will add an extra step to the process of getting refugee assistance, the newspaper wrote. On the other hand, there are fears of additional complications due to the volatility of the global crypto market throughout the year.

Molly White, a critic of the crypto sector, commented on this UN initiative, "They are directly asking people to participate in crypto transactions." But White pointed out that some parts of the crypto sector as a whole are at greater risk.

The Washington Post did not have an immediate response from UNHCR to the criticism.

"Speed is of particular importance in humanitarian work," said Carolina Lindholm Billing, UNHCR's representative in Ukraine, when announcing the delivery of aid in cryptocurrencies. It is also important to provide people with multiple means of cooperation; One thing does not fit all.”

Volatility has prevailed in the global crypto market throughout the year; The overall situation has further deteriorated in the last few months. Leading crypto exchange FTX declares company bankrupt; Sam Bankman-Fried, the company's former CEO, has been arrested on charges of fraud and money laundering.

On the other hand, Bitcoin, the top currency of the crypto market, has lost a lot of value. The price of the once stable crypto currency 'TeraUSD' has dropped below three more zeros after the decimal point.

But since the beginning of the Ukraine war, the relevance of crypto currency in the scenario has been noticeable. In the early days of the war, the Ukrainian government raised nearly $100 million in crypto-currencies.

Now the United Nations has decided to launch a pilot project to provide financial aid through crypto currency in the cities of Kyiv, Lviv and Vinnytsia.

According to the Washington Post, officials have demanded a six-month review of the utility of this technology service among victims. But it is not yet clear how successful the UN experiment has been.

Displaced people must first download a virtual wallet app called 'Vibrant' on their smartphones to receive UN financial aid. Funds will first arrive in the app's account as USDC; Refugees can then collect euros or dollars in exchange for that crypto currency.

The Washington Post reports that USDC is a cryptocurrency based on the 'Stellar Blockchain'. Its program is written by the 'Stellar Development Foundation'; Its main function is to promote the Stellar Blockchain.

Officials of the organization claimed that their humanitarian activities were limited due to geographical limitations. But it will be possible to expand its scope through crypto currency.

🔸Ukrainian government officials, however, welcomed the UN initiative. "For Ukrainians fleeing for their lives and especially those without access to banks ... this could serve as a last resort for survival," said Oleksandr Borniakov, the country's deputy minister for digital transformation.

But White fears that the need to download a wallet to access the service will expose refugees to the dangers of the crypto world.

“Most crypto wallets always want you to buy more crypto currency,” he told The Washington Post.

In this, the refugees can invest the aid money in other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. And at the end of the day, White fears that it could turn into a gamble.

He thinks that crypto currency companies will benefit in this situation. Acknowledging the importance of aid money going into the hands of refugees, he said, "It is not actually helping people. It's not about how much money we're sending to refugees in Ukraine, it's about demonstrating the use of stablecoins."

✴️According to critics, the use of stablecoins is more important than providing financial aid to refugees.

What is your opinion on this❓

[electronicash]

that's for sure. the refugees will more than likely to buy BTC after receiving USDC. its gonna be a free money turned investment.
providing the refugees with aide will do good but the better for them to have a job which, they should just build factories or hire them to companies in the city.

UN using crypto such as stablecoin on Stellar blockchain does look like an adoption. nothing is more important than to provide for the refugees though whichever kind of currency will do.

[jackg]

There will be problems with any system that gets implemented. The use of an app and cryptocurrency though may force them to use/pay for Internet though too but it might reach further than cash and be about a similar complexity to corrupt.

I have no idea how Ukrainians are living in relation to things like mortgages, rent and utility payments but I'd assume they'd become more relaxed if the resident doesn't have the money to pay. Also the amount given in usdc might be considered by refugees as more of a bonus as those displaced in Ukraine will likely already be receiving some sort of pay from the government, those displaced into other countries within Europe will also receive funds to live and a lot.might already have jobs or businesses (I saw a stat that said more businesses in Poland were owned by Ukrainians than Polish people - if this was misread from "created in the 6 months since the war" then that still sounds positive)..

[Magpie99]

that's for sure. the refugees will more than likely to buy BTC after receiving USDC. its gonna be a free money turned investment.

Will this result in the crypto market being energized again? What do you think?

[electronicash]

that's for sure. the refugees will more than likely to buy BTC after receiving USDC. its gonna be a free money turned investment.

Will this result in the crypto market being energized again? What do you think?

i couldn't be sure. but the when US provides stimi during covid lockdowns, many of them are buying coins and altcoins. its not going to be surprising if they are going to do it again after all they are receiving USDC which they only need gas fee to send it to an exchange. so they would need Stellar (XLM) for the gas fee? I'm not familiar with XLM actually but it will be cheaper for its current price is just $0.07.

[tvplus006]

... according to the Washington Post.

You need to leave a link to the article, otherwise it will be regarded as plagiarism.

that's for sure. the refugees will more than likely to buy BTC after receiving USDC. its gonna be a free money turned investment...

Are you really sure that refugees who have lost their homes and jobs, once in a foreign country, will start investing in bitcoin? I think that such people have too many unresolved needs and all the money received will be directed to their satisfaction.

[jossiel]

that's for sure. the refugees will more than likely to buy BTC after receiving USDC. its gonna be a free money turned investment.

Will this result in the crypto market being energized again? What do you think?

That won't be enough.

It's just another news that there will be help to the people of Ukraine through USDC. Yeah, there could be more demand but it's not enough to tell that it will energize the market and be in the bull run once again.

And people who will receive the aid, they'll have to buy their provisions instead of thinking that putting it back to the crypto market.

[Desmong]

This a good news and I hope to see more because the Ukrainian soldiers that are fighting the war are really giving their lives to there country to make sure that everything is in place and Russia does not take over there land which is a great effort to note. If more funds and aids is given to Ukraine to care for the lost ones and relations, this will help then in a long way.

[el kaka22]

Ukraine getting money help versus Americans who are out of job getting money is not the same. Americans got the money and some of them spent it on bitcoin because nobody was shooting at them or sending missiles, Ukrainians would get that money and could use it to buy food or shelter or whatever, they are literally fighting against one of the biggest armies in the world, a nation with a nuclear weapon.

So all in all I have to disagree that they would buy bitcoin with it, they are spending every last dime to survive, not many people are spending on luxury anymore, 99% of Ukraine spending their money on surviving and literally staying alive, not just out of job, they are out of some parts of the nation as a whole.

[Argoo]

This a good news and I hope to see more because the Ukrainian soldiers that are fighting the war are really giving their lives to there country to make sure that everything is in place and Russia does not take over there land which is a great effort to note. If more funds and aids is given to Ukraine to care for the lost ones and relations, this will help then in a long way.

In general, the UN initiative to provide financial assistance to refugees from Ukraine in USDC stablecoin deserves approval from any side. The most significant international organization has actually recognized that cryptocurrency is superior to conventional currency in the simplicity and versatility of its use and that in this case, the currency in the form of stablecoins is the easiest and most affordable to transfer to refugees, wherever they are. And although stable coins are not exactly related to cryptocurrency, however, this fact will greatly help, in my opinion, the legalization and distribution of cryptocurrencies.

[dwminer1]

I admit I have mixed feelings about this. It all depends on the scale on which it is to be done. On the one hand, it would probably revive the market a bit, because probably some of these stablecoins would be invested in bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. However, on the other hand, giving cryptocurrencies to many people who have had little or no experience with cryptocurrencies so far, does not bode well. Even experienced users sometimes lose cryptocurrencies, either by their own mistakes or by the actions of scammers. I am sure that in the case of massive financial assistance paid in cryptocurrencies, scammers and hackers would get the most. And in the mainstream, of course, the message would be that cryptocurrencies, not users, are bad. However, if this experiment were successful, it would be a huge step towards widespread crypto adoption. I think the subject is worth the risk.

[o48o]

that's for sure. the refugees will more than likely to buy BTC after receiving USDC. its gonna be a free money turned investment.
-cut-

Some of these people have lost everything and bitcoin is the last thing on their mind right now. Their relatives are lost to the enemy and rest of them are being brutally attacked, people are dying left and right and only things mattering now is survival and some stabilitility.

It would be pretty reckless and irresponsible for any parent put their money needed to feed and clothe their children to some speculative and volatile asset right not.
Asset that's under heavy opposition because of the energy crisis.

What these families need now is stability, safety and peace. Not to play with the most volatile markets out there, so please have some sensitivity and don't push bitcoin or any other crypto to them as long this war is ongoing.

[AmoreJaz]

I admit I have mixed feelings about this. It all depends on the scale on which it is to be done. On the one hand, it would probably revive the market a bit, because probably some of these stablecoins would be invested in bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. However, on the other hand, giving cryptocurrencies to many people who have had little or no experience with cryptocurrencies so far, does not bode well. Even experienced users sometimes lose cryptocurrencies, either by their own mistakes or by the actions of scammers. I am sure that in the case of massive financial assistance paid in cryptocurrencies, scammers and hackers would get the most. And in the mainstream, of course, the message would be that cryptocurrencies, not users, are bad. However, if this experiment were successful, it would be a huge step towards widespread crypto adoption. I think the subject is worth the risk.

it was said that beneficiaries can collect their money by fiat. i believe UN is just sending the money to a third party remittance using stable coin as it is easier for them and relatively cheaper in fees. but once the beneficiary claims his allotment, the remittance center will just convert the stable coin to their fiat. so in this case, there's no need for them to learn how to transact with stable coin or other crypto. as they are using stable coin, the volatility is not a problem here.

[Ozero]

This a good news and I hope to see more because the Ukrainian soldiers that are fighting the war are really giving their lives to there country to make sure that everything is in place and Russia does not take over there land which is a great effort to note. If more funds and aids is given to Ukraine to care for the lost ones and relations, this will help then in a long way.

This is, in principle, a good idea. Since refugees from Ukraine are now in many countries where there are various features of their banking system, stablecoin assistance will help to ignore this. All that is needed in this case is to provide the UN with a list of such refugees and their wallet address. On the other hand, this will force Ukrainians to become more familiar with the work of cryptocurrency wallets and will allow in practice to compare the efficiency of the banking system and cryptocurrencies. In general, it will be useful for Ukrainians. But how they will use the USDC provided to them is their business.