Russia-Ukraine Crisis May Foster Crypto Adoption, Says Ethereum Co-Founder

Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin while sharing his two cents on the role of digital currencies in the ongoing Ukraine-Russia crisis has said that the asset class can be viewed as among Ukraine’s best weapons against Russia. According to Lubin, who’s also the founder of blockchain software technology company ConsenSys, said the ongoing geopolitical war in Eastern Europe is becoming a “point of no return” for the global market’s integration of cryptocurrencies. The entrepreneur went on to highlight that the Ukrainian government has so far received more than $60 million (roughly Rs. 458 crore) worth in cryptocurrency donations.

While many consider digital currencies as a financial and monetary tool, Lubin believes they are a form of weapon that is capable of empowering smaller and less powerful nations. “This country (referring to Ukraine) and many others are going to have to make use of this powerful tool and weapon. Nobody likes weapons, but you have to be as capable with powerful weapons as your neighbours are.”

Lubin’s comments came from an interaction with Decrypt’s editor-in-chief, Dan Roberts, when he said that the role crypto played in Ukraine is a pivotal point in the history of the crypto ecosystem, and can notably fuel the asset’s mainstream adoption.

“It’s another moment for our industry,” Lubin said. “It represents crossing the chasm into mainstream adoption. Now we’re onto national security issues. It’s going to be so profound, a point of no return for our industry, because it’s clear that our technology is very powerful and unstoppable.”

Irrespective of the perception of other nations regarding crypto, Lubin predicted that digital assets will “be used by many different nation-states, regardless of what other nation-states say or do, and this means that every nation-state has to create policy, get savvy, and start wielding these tools.”

While showing his respect for countries that have adopted digital currencies so far, Lubin slammed the US government for dragging its feet for a while and said the Executive Order President Joe Biden signed last week was more or less “kind of funny, like, ‘Hey, all you agencies get a clue!’ That’s basically what he said.”

A lot of nations are undoubtedly waking up to the potential of cryptocurrencies with countries like El Salvador adopting Bitcoin as a legal tender, stirring a move that many nations may be willing to consider in the near future.

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