Russian journalists solicit crypto donations amidst western sanctions

Russian journalists turn to accepting cryptocurrency donations to keep their operations moving despite western sanctions

By Shashank Bhardwaj

Image: Shutterstock

Russian readers have been unable to make payments on the leading Russian language news website Meduza after the West imposed sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. These sanctions have prevented the payment company Strike from serving its Russian readers of the Latvian outlet.

Customer payments are the main source of money for the news website. Currently, Meduza relies on alternate funding sources, such as cryptocurrencies. "We couldn't predict that the sanctions of Western governments will come first and destroy our crowdfunding," Editor-in-Chief Ivan Kolpakov stated.

After Putin effectively outlawed independent war reporting, keeping the lights on has become crucial to Russia's free press. The main predicament is figuring out how to report about their country from outside after the new restrictions scattered hundreds of local journalists around the globe.

Meduza continues to publish investigations; however, the information is blocked in Russia, forcing users in Meduza's core market to access it via virtual private networks. Meduza pushed its readers to download their news app and follow their Telegram channel, and their audience adapted quickly.

Following the restrictions, Meduza has lost nearly a third of its traffic, and they still need funds to keep going. Instead of relying on donations from its 30,000 Russian followers who supported it prior to the war, Meduza is now appealing to its international audience to give dollars, euros, or cryptocurrency as soon as possible to assist its 25 journalists, who are largely based in Riga.

Their donation page includes instructions on buying Bitcoin and Ethereum on Binance and step-by-step guidance on sending untraceable payments using Monero for those concerned about anonymity. According to on-chain statistics, the Bitcoin and Ether wallets listed on Meduza's website held cryptocurrencies valued at roughly $230,000.

The Russian government is trying to curb independent journalism and has threatened independent journalists with 15 years in prison for exposing the official version of the war in Ukraine. The Russian government has also turned to cryptocurrency to deal with the Western sanctions.

According to Russian news outlet Kommersant, the Ministry of Finance is working on a bill to legalise the use of cryptocurrencies in Russia. The bill aims to make cryptocurrency a recognised mode of payment and an investment asset. Meanwhile, Elvira Nabiullina, Bank of Russia's Governor, informed Russia's lower house of parliament that a central bank digital currency capable of international settlements would be feasible by next year.

Shashank is the founder at yMedia. He ventured into crypto in 2013 and is an ETH maximalist. Twitter: @bhardwajshash

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