The founder of the Ukrainian crypto exchange talks about 'how life changed in the war'
Ukraine's Crypto Banker Describes How War Is Changing His Life --Bloomberg
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-31/ukraine-s-crypto-banker-describes-how-war-is-changing-his-life
KUNA Exchange Owner In Charge Of Ukrainian Government's Virtual Crypto Fund | Bitcoinist.com
https://bitcoinist.com/kuna-exchange-in-charge-of-virtual-crypto-fund/
Mr. Chobanian has led Ukraine's largest crypto exchange 'KUNA' for the past six years and has become known as the 'father' of the crypto scene in Ukraine. Although cryptocurrencies have long been the focus of attention among civilians in Ukraine, government agencies have not made much progress in cryptocurrencies, and the government officially legalized cryptocurrencies after the start of the war. It was March. However, during the war, cryptocurrencies were widely used by civilians and governments, and Deputy Prime Minister Mikhailo Fedrov said in mid-March that 'more than 60 million dollars (about 7.4 billion yen) of donations were collected from all over the world, and cryptocurrencies. I bought 5500 bulletproof vests, 500 helmets, 3125 night-vision devices, medicines, food, etc.
Since then, support for Ukraine by virtual currency has continued, and in the five weeks since the war with Russia began, the research company TRM has a total of 100 million dollars (about 12.3 billion yen) for the Ukrainian government and NGOs supporting Ukraine. We are analyzing that we have received a considerable amount of virtual currency.
Ukraine succeeds in collecting donations of over 10 billion yen in virtual currency-GIGAZINE
While the Ukrainian government recognizes the importance of cryptocurrencies, Mr. Chobanian, who has played an important role in the Ukrainian cryptocurrency scene, is also in a different position than before. This interview with Bloomberg was conducted on March 12th and 18th through voice recording of the messaging app 'Telegram'.
According to Chobanian, the pre-war Ukrainian government did not officially recognize cryptocurrencies, so there was a risk that government agencies would crack down on cryptocurrency companies' offices. There, Chobanian is chairman of the Blockchain Association, which was set up to protect the cryptocurrency business, and said he had trouble with government agencies before the war. Mr. Chobanian, who has been promoting cryptocurrencies from the beginning in Ukraine, is the first cryptocurrency promoter in Ukraine to be searched by the police because it has received a lot of attention in the cryptocurrency scene such as opening the first cryptocurrency exchange in Ukraine. That's right.
Although not officially approved by the government, the Ukrainian cryptocurrency scene was very active even before the war. In the ' Global Cryptocurrency Adoption Index ' released in 2020 by Chainalysis, a research company related to cryptocurrencies, Ukraine is the degree of cryptocurrency penetration when weighted by purchasing power parity per person. Has been shown to be one of the world's leading countries. The capital, Kieu, is the center of the crypto scene, Chobanian said, 'There are probably 2 to 3000 developers, and many large crypto-related companies have offices in Kieu, such as hackathons and general meetups. Cryptocurrency technicians gathered every week, including ups. Before COVID-19, literally thousands of people participated in meetups. '
Mr. Chobanian said that he had met when the current president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, was still a presidential candidate, and exchanged opinions on what IT companies and cryptocurrency companies in Ukraine need. 'At that time he didn't know much about cryptocurrencies, but now he knows well about cryptocurrencies because they are saving the country. Since he hasn't talked to him since then, he is now. I don't know what you think, but it's probably a very positive one, 'said Chobanian.
'Unfortunately, I can remember every hour of the day,' said Chobanian. On the 24th, Mr. Chobanian woke up with 'really, really loud noise' like many other people, and immediately checked the news on the net and learned of the invasion of the Russian army.
Chobanian had previously evacuated many of the members of KUNA outside Ukraine two months before the war began, as he knew that this was likely to happen. However, because there were still members and their families remaining in the country, as planned in advance, at 15:00 on the 24th, all of them gathered at Mr. Chobanian's house, loaded their cars and headed to the relatively safe western Ukraine. It states that it has moved.
Since then, Mr. Chobanian has been acting as a 'cryptocurrency banker for the government' without joining the army. 'I'm not very good at military,' said Chobanian, who collects, raises and stores cryptocurrencies, exchanges cryptocurrencies for another or fiat currencies, for intermediaries and governments. He is in charge of tasks such as opening a bank account and purchasing goods required by the Department of Defense.
'My role is to provide people with what they need and to be able to pay as soon as possible,' said Chobanian. For example, when making a payment through a banking system with a foreign partner, it takes one day to deposit US dollars, one day to confirm and pay the payment, and one day to settle through
Asked if there have been any changes in daily life since the beginning of the war, Chobanian said, 'Most notably, the flow of time has changed altogether, so two weeks ago or two days ago. I can't remember whether it was two years ago or not. The other is that I became stressed as soon as I heard something loud. (The Russian invasion began) That day. I remember that morning, and so do all my family. ' At the time of the interview, he said he couldn't reveal the exact location, but he said he wasn't in Kyiv.
Regarding the large amount of donations made by the crypto communities around the world, 'I knew that people would help me because I know a lot of wealthy Ukrainian crypto operators living abroad. With the help of the locals, we are united. Yesterday we were competitors, but now we are in one big family. Other big names around the world Many of the crypto billionaires in Ukraine know us personally and would definitely help, 'he said, expecting even more donations in the future. ..
He also claimed that he expected that one day cryptocurrencies would play an important role, but he didn't think it was a war, he thought it was a more peaceful way. 'There are words like this. I can't stop the idea. I think that time will come someday.' I think that's exactly what cryptocurrencies are. '
It seems that the cryptocurrency market in Ukraine is clearly changing due to this situation,
In addition, although many people were skeptical about cryptocurrencies in the government, banks, and the military, it is clear that cryptocurrencies have saved people's lives after the war, so the government also has cryptocurrencies. Chobanian argues that the power of the currency can no longer be ignored. 'All the skeptics have come to realize that cryptocurrencies are here and really useful. I think this is the biggest fundamental change,' he said.
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