Wikipedia to Stop Accepting Crypto Donations on Environmental, Other Grounds

Wikimedia, the non-profit foundation that runs Wikipedia, has decided to stop accepting cryptocurrency donations following a three-month debate in which the environmental impact of bitcoin BTC$75 893,75 was a major discussion point.

• The decision came in response to a community vote on a proposal to the foundation from contributor Molly White, who goes by the user name GorillaWarfare, argued that accepting donations in cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, BCH$526,05 and ether ETH$2 244,25 signals endorsement of digital coins, which are “inherently predatory” as investments and don’t align with the foundation's commitment to environmental sustainability.
• Excluding new accounts and unregistered users, of the fewer than 400 users who voted, 232 to 94, or 71.17%, supported no longer accepting crypto.

• White argued that Wikipedia risked damaging its reputation by accepting crypto donations, citing the decision earlier in the year by non-profit peer, Mozilla, to pause accepting donations in crypto.
• Wikimedia accepts bitcoin, bitcoin cash, and ether via BitPay. White singled out bitcoin and ether’s need for enormous amounts of energy, while noting that there are other “eco-friendlier” cryptocurrencies, although they are less widely used.
• Crypto miners, which use tremendous amounts of computing power to validate transactions using proof-of-work, have been criticized for damaging the environment.
• However, miners have been actively countering such criticism by using more sustainable energy sources for their mining operations. Furthermore, bitcoin supporters argue that miners can help drive a change to clean energy.
• Meanwhile, the Ethereum network has been working towards transitioning to a proof-of-stake model for validating transactions, which uses less energy, although the switch has faced prolonged delays.
• Wikimedia left the door open to possibly resuming accepting crypto, saying it will continue to monitor the situation.