Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has transformed an unexpected frenzy of animal-themed memecoins into a charitable donation, enhancing animal welfare efforts.
Last year, amidst the meme coin frenzy, Buterin received various tokens which, while whimsical in nature, carried substantial monetary value. Instead of holding onto these tokens, Buterin chose a philanthropic route, donating all received animal-themed memecoins to charity.
Earlier today (August 15), Buterin announced the completion of these donations via a post on X, detailing his contributions to the Effective Altruism Funds' Animal Welfare Fund.
He shared a receipt that confirmed the transfer of 200 Ethereum, valued at approximately $532,398, executed on August 14.
He also encouraged the memecoin community to consider direct contributions to charities, suggesting that they could make a more significant impact by donating directly to organizations in need instead of sending tokens to public figures like himself.
Furthermore, Buterin advocated for more "sophisticated public goods funding," referencing his previous discussions about the potential for cryptocurrencies to support wide-ranging charitable and public benefit activities.
In his words: “Charity donation done, covering all animal coins from the past year or so! That said, I appreciate it if coin holdings just get allocated to the charities directly.
“It's 2024, we can start doing more sophisticated public goods fun-ding.”
Notably, the events leading to this donation include when the memecoin project Neiro on ETH (NEIRO) sought to leverage Buterin's high profile to gain visibility by sending a portion of its token supply to the ETH founder.
Although the token initially experienced a dip following Buterin's NEIRO token sale, the price quickly rebounded, registering triple-digit gains.
So far, the token has seen continued growth, with holders increasing rapidly. It recently gained listing on one of the leading exchanges in the crypto market, Bybit.
