Leading crypto platforms began to send funds to help Turkey, which suffered from a devastating earthquake. Binance, OKX, Gate.io, Huobi, Bybit, Bitget and other crypto exchanges have already announced the allocation of financial assistance.
Binance has announced that it will be distributing $100 worth of BNB tokens to all users who live in the regions most affected by the disaster. According to the platform’s calculations, the total amount of assistance will be about $5 million.
In addition, the exchange said in a statement that Binance Charity has created a public address for donations that anyone can make. The funds are converted into Turkish Lira and donated to an authorized non-governmental organization to help those in need. Donations are accepted in Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), BNB (BNB), stablecoin BUSD and Ripple (XRP).
OKX will send 1 million Turkish liras (about $53.100) to support the victims, Haider Rafik, marketing director of the exchange, said.
Bitget has also donated 1 million lira for relief efforts in solidarity with the people affected by the natural disaster.
Bitfinex, Tether, Keet and Synonym have jointly pledged 5 million liras ($265,000) for humanitarian aid. The companies also said they would look for ways to provide continued support for Turkey to recover in the future.
Bybit said it will send $100,000 to the Turkish Emergency Management Authority (AFAD). The Gate.io team has donated 1 million lira and announced the imminent creation of a donation fund for Earthquake Recovery NFT.
Huobi CEO Justin Sun announced the creation of a 2 million Turkish lira ($106,000) relief fund by the Tron exchange and blockchain in memory of the victims of the Turkish earthquake.
CoinEx, unlike other exchanges, expressed condolences to those affected by the elements not only in Turkey, but also in Syria. She declared her readiness to help, but did not specify what exactly the assistance would consist of.
Despite the fact that cryptocurrency donations are prohibited in Turkey, the non-profit organization Ahbap obtained permission from the Financial Crimes Investigation Board of Turkey (MASAK) and published wallet addresses to which funds can be transferred within a week. The news was announced by the founder of the Ahbap Association, Haluk Levent.
According to the latest data, the earthquake, which has become the most powerful in this region since 1939, claimed the lives of more than 3.5 thousand people in Turkey, 1.5 thousand in Syria.