Ukraine
Bono and The Edge Surprise Ukrainian Soldiers with Concert in Bomb Shelter
Bono and The Edge performed a surprise acoustic concert from a Kyiv bomb shelter on Sunday in support of the Ukrainian people in the midst of their ongoing war with Russia. “President @ZelenskyyUa invited us to perform in Kyiv as a show of solidarity with the Ukrainian people and so that’s what we’ve come to do. — Bono and The Edge #StandWithUkraine,” U2 tweeted from their official account ahead of the impromptu set, which took place in the converted Kryschatek metro station. According to a report by The Irish Times, the rock star duo ran through a number of U2 songs, including “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” “Angel of Harlem,” “With or Without You,” and “Desire” before performing a special rendition of Ben E. King’s classic “Stand By Me” alongside a golden-voiced Ukrainian soldier. Advertisement ...
Les Claypool and Gogol Bordello’s Eugene Hütz Lead All-Star Tribute “Zelensky: The Man with the Iron Balls”: Stream
Ever since Russia began their ongoing invasion of Ukraine back in February, the latter’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has become a household name and a figure of perseverance around the globe. Today, Primus’ Les Claypool and Gogol Bordello’s Eugene Hütz have honored the tenacious leader with a, er, ballsy new anthem called “Zelensky: The Man with the Iron Balls.” Aside from Claypool and Hütz, “Zelensky: The Man with the Iron Balls” boasts some other familiar names: The Police’s Stewart Copeland plays drums, Sean Lennon sings and aids on guitar, Hütz’s bandmate Sergey Ryabtseb plays the fiddle, and Billy Strings joins on the acoustic guitar. The song is backed by a marching band drum beat that will make you want to salute to all the noble steel gonads around the world. Claypool and Hüt...
Nifty News: Grow-to-earn with Snoop — and is Dorsey’s tweet priceless or worthless?
The nonfungible token (NFT) of the first ever tweet made on Twitter by founder Jack Dorsey is currently struggling to attract a bid even 1% of its sale price last year. The iconic “genesis tweet” was sold for 1,630 Ether (ETH) valued at $2.9 million about a year ago on March 22, 2021. The highest current bid for this attempt to auction it is 10.3 ETH worth about $31,739 on NFT marketplace OpenSea. The nonfungible token (NFT) of the first ever tweet made on Twitter by founder Jack Dorsey is currently struggling to attract a bid even 1% of its auction price last year. The genesis tweet made on Twitter by founder Jack Dorsey. Its owner, Bridge Oracle founder Sina Estavi hoped the tweet would generate at least $50 million dollars, half of which he said he would donate to charity after closing ...
Belarus-born crypto platform halts operations for Russians in response to invasion of Ukraine
Crypto trading company Currency.com has announced it halted operations for clients based in Russia following the country’s “violence and disorder” imposed on the people of Ukraine. In a Tuesday announcement, Currency.com said Russian residents would no longer be able to access its services following the platform’s decision to stop Russia-based clients from opening new accounts. According to Currency.com’s website, the Gibraltar-based crypto trading platform has offices in Kyiv, London, and Vilnius, but was previously licensed and headquartered in Belarus. “We condemn the Russian aggression in the strongest possible terms,” said Vitalii Kedyk, head of strategy for the platform’s London operations and CEO of Currency.com’s Ukraine arm. “In these circumstances we can no longer continue to ser...
Sean Penn Says He Considered Joining Ukrainian Armed Forces
Just a few weeks after returning to the US following his pedestrian flee from Ukraine to Poland, Sean Penn says he considered joining Ukraine’s resistance against Russia. In an interview with the new quarterly magazine Hollywood Authentic, the actor said he only would’ve stayed in Ukraine longer to join the country’s armed forces. “The only possible reason for me staying in Ukraine longer last time would’ve been for me to be holding a rifle, probably without body armor, because as a foreigner, you would want to give that body armor to one of the civilian fighters who doesn’t have it or to a fighter with more skills than I have, or to a younger man or woman who could fight for longer or whatever,” Penn said. “So, where I am in life is short of doing that, but if you’ve been in Ukraine ...
Sean Penn Says He Considered Joining Ukrainian Armed Forces
Just a few weeks after returning to the US following his pedestrian flee from Ukraine to Poland, Sean Penn says he considered joining Ukraine’s resistance against Russia. In an interview with the new quarterly magazine Hollywood Authentic, the actor said he only would’ve stayed in Ukraine longer to join the country’s armed forces. “The only possible reason for me staying in Ukraine longer last time would’ve been for me to be holding a rifle, probably without body armor, because as a foreigner, you would want to give that body armor to one of the civilian fighters who doesn’t have it or to a fighter with more skills than I have, or to a younger man or woman who could fight for longer or whatever,” Penn said. “So, where I am in life is short of doing that, but if you’ve been in Ukraine ...
Monero defies crypto market slump with 10% XMR price rally — what’s next?
Privacy-focused cryptocurrency Monero (XMR) rallied by nearly 9.5% in the past week compared with the crypto market’s decline of 8.5% in the same period. What’s more, the XMR/USD pair has broken above a strong, multi-month resistance trendline, hinting at more upside ahead. XMR price action XMR’s price was down by a modest 0.87% on April 10 from its two-month-high of $245 established a day before. However, the cryptocurrency still outperformed its top rivals, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), on a weekly timeframe. Speculations about entities using Monero to bypass sanctions could have boosted its appeal among investors. Meanwhile, The American research group Brookings warned last month that Monero, the first in the line of privacy coins, could...
‘I’ve never paid with crypto before’: How digital assets make a difference amid a war
The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has become a stress test for crypto in many tangible ways. Digital assets have emerged as an effective means of directly supporting humanitarian efforts, and the crypto industry, despite enormous pressure, has largely proved itself a mature community — one ready to comply with international policies without compromising the core principles of decentralization. But there is another vital role that crypto has filled during these tragic events: It is becoming more and more familiar to those who have found themselves cut off from the payment systems that had once seemed unfailing. Traditional financial infrastructures don’t usually work well during military confrontations and humanitarian crises. From hyperinflation and cash shortages to the destruction of ATMs,...
Vitalik Buterin quietly donates $5M ETH to aid Ukraine as total tracked crypto donations reach $133M
As told by Aid for Ukraine, a joint initiative created by the Ukrainian government, FTX, Everstake and Kuna to rally crypto donations for the country, Ethereum (ETH) co-founder Vitalik Buterin made $5 million worth of ETH donations to Ukraine in early April. According to the entity, despite the large donation sum, Buterin did not make an announcement regarding the transaction. It was eventually linked to him via the Ethereum Name Service domain name “vitalik.eth,” which served as the origin of the transfer. .@VitalikButerin donated almost $2.5M in $ETH to @_AidForUkraine 2 days ago, and didn’t say a word! He’s also donated $2.5M to @Unchainfund. Thanks for your enormous help, Vitalik, and thank you for creating @ethereum! The #Ethereum community is pic.twitter.com/H...
Electronic Artist Streams Live Modular Synthesis Set From Bomb Shelter In Ukraine
Streaming live from a bomb shelter in the Ukrainian city of Lviv on Saturday, music producer and composer Heinali performed for 30 minutes to raise money for the Ukrainian army and humanitarian aid. During the performance, Heinali performed using a modular system that he saved from his home during an evacuation amid the Russian invasion. “Live from Ukraine team successfully managed to broadcast my fundraiser live set from a bomb shelter in Lviv yesterday, despite the air raid alarm two hours before the performance and a rather wonky 100m ethernet cable made of two 50m cables and a coupler shielded from rain with a plastic bag,” Heinali said in an Instagram post. Heinali, whose real name is Oleh Shpudieko, combines electronic sound design, medieval harmonies and free i...
UN agency accepts first stablecoin donations worth $2.5M to help Ukrainian refugees
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), a UN agency for refugees, has accepted its first-ever crypto donations toward humanitarians aid for Ukrainians fleeing the war-torn nation. UNHCR accepted $2.5 million in Binance USD (BUSD) stablecoin donations from Binance Charity that would be utilized to rehabilitate and support refugees fleeing to neighboring countries from Ukraine. According to a report from the USA for UNHCR, more than 10 million people have been displaced from their homes in Ukraine, and the agency will use crypto stablecoin charity funds to provide legal and social assistance. Marie Grey, Executive Director and CEO of USA for UNHCR said that the crypto donation will prove vital in its efforts to help as many families as possible. Grey also lauded the global...
Metallica’s Foundation Donates $500,000 to Help Feed Ukrainian Refugees
Metallica’s All Within My Hands Foundation has donated $500,000 to help feed Ukrainian refugees. The money is going to the World Central Kitchen, which is providing meals for millions of people who have fled Ukraine as the country continues to come under attack by Russia. World Central Kitchen was founded by Chef José Andrés to provide “meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises.” Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich said of the donation, “The work that Chef José Andrés and the dedicated World Central Kitchen cooks do on the frontlines in a humanitarian crisis is nothing short of incredible. We are inspired, humbled, and beyond proud to support their teams currently in six European countries serving the millions of Ukrainians who have been forced to leave their homes.” Adver...
