Leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance is set to donate $1 million to flood victims in Japan, after the country was hit by “record-breaking rain” that left 38 people dead and saw almost 50 others go missing.
According to a recent blog post, Binance is going to donate the equivalent of $1 million in Bitcoin (BTC), Binance Coin (BNB), or Japanese Yen (JPY). The company’s CEO Changpeng Zhao posted about the situation on Twitter to his over 197,000 followers.
Our hearts go out to the victims in West Japan. @binance will begin with a $1,000,000 USD equivalent donation in either BNB, BTC, or JPY. We also ask our crypto partners to join us and help our friends in need.
— CZ (not giving crypto away) (@cz_binance) July 8, 2018
Record downpours, according to the Independent, have been battering the southwest of the country since Thursday, leading to a series of floods and landslides affecting various regions. The government has already deployed 48,000 rescue workers to look for injured or trapped people. Over 500 homes are said to have been damaged.
The disaster also saw Binance call on the cryptocurrency community’s support to raise funds along with them. The blog post noted that users can either donate anonymously or add their name to the donation. The CEO added:
To make a donation through Binance, 1 (optional, skip to be anonymous) email us at [email protected]. 2. send ETH or ERC20 to 0xA73d9021f67931563fDfe3E8f66261086319a1FC. All outgoing tx from this address will be explained by Binance and used for charity purposes only.
Zhao revealed Binance is working on the exact logistics with local authorities to figure out how to help the victims. To get more donations, he added that projects who donate to the cause will get “bonus points for future listing requests,” with the donated amount counting towards future listing fees.
Exact logistics will be figured out shortly. Reply to this thread or let me know if you (ur project) want to donate. Bonus points for future listing requests. And we may count your donations towards the listing fees. Listed projects, you know what to do!
— CZ (not giving crypto away) (@cz_binance) July 8, 2018
The amount raised may notably be high, as Japan’s cryptocurrency scene has been developing in the last few months. As CryptoGlobe covered, cryptocurrency miners are moving to the country’s rural areas to take advantage of cheap electricity and government subsidies.
The country recently saw e-commerce firm DMM.com set up a large mining operation in the central city of Kanazawa, and internet giant GMO launch an upgraded 7nm Bitcoin Miner called B3, with a total hash power of 33 TH/s.
