Paxful launches bitcoin donation campaign to support charities in Africa’s response to COVID-19

In 2017, Paxful launched the #BuiltWithBitcoin charitable initiative to show that bitcoin can help people around the world.

With the goal to build 100 schools, water wells, and community gardens for sustainable agriculture funded entirely by bitcoin, the initiative showcases the capability of charity and philanthropy within the crypto industry.

They are expanding the initiative with the launch of the Africa Fund, which aims to use bitcoin donations to purchase Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), food packs, and even provide high-risk individuals with groceries and handwashing stations.

With COVID-19 on the rise in Africa and cases growing at exponential rates, the #BuiltWithBitcoin Africa Fund is on a mission to provide a solution to the supply gap that the most vulnerable are feeling.

Paxful is kicking off the fund with $15,000 USD, and matching any additional donations submitted up to $15,000 USD to the fund by members of the community in bitcoin.

With this initial injection of funds, they will focus on the biggest issues facing Africa right now which include access to food, water, and medical supplies. Paxful will provide 8,400 meals across South Africa facilitated by GROW Educare Centres and its parent organization The Clothing Bank and 6,100 masks for frontline workers in the Kibera slums of Kenya by SHOFCO.

Additional participants within the #BuiltWithBitcoin Africa fund include Zam Zam Water, a humanitarian organization devoted to eradicating poverty by providing clean, sustainable water and access to quality education to villages across the globe.

Their monetary donations will provide more than 1,000 underserved people with food, vitamin C, sanitizer, face masks, diapers, and carrier bags in various states of Nigeria including Kaduna Kano, Adamawa, Enugu, Abuja, Lagos, and Kwara.

“This is a direct response to the pandemic and by utilizing the power of bitcoin we will serve thousands on the ground in a positive way,” said Executive Director of Zam Zam Water, Yusuf Nessary.

They will also help in providing the 341 families (total of 1873 people) whose children attend Paxful’s #BuiltWithBitcoin schools in Rwanda with health insurance, access to clean water, books, and school supplies to continue learning through the pandemic.

“As a bootstrapped company, with founders who have a passion for giving, we cultivated #BuiltWithBitcoin around creating positive social change,” said Ray Youssef, CEO of Paxful.

“Paxful was the first to really look at Africa and see the opportunity to make a difference through bitcoin. The Africa Fund is just the latest in what will be an ongoing effort to provide relief and serve these resilient communities within their time of need.”

Over the last five years, through the ups and downs of bitcoin’s price volatility, Paxful has grown unwaveringly, with the main success point attributed to its dedication to fuelling a million-dollar remittance and payment market for underbanked and unbanked Africans in countries like Nigeria and Kenya.

In accordance with that mission, Paxful’s philanthropic initiative, #BuiltWithBitcoin, has redefined the scope of a successful Bitcoin company by building not only financially-empowering products but also by providing previously unattainable educational opportunities by building schools in Rwanda and Kenya.

The Africa Fund is an extension of this initiative, further demonstrating Paxful’s dedication to helping underserved communities.

“SHOFCO is on the front lines of COVID-19 response in Kenya’s urban slums, working around the clock to address basic needs like access to clean water, good hygiene and sanitation, economic support and emergency food relief.

With support from Paxful we are able to deliver essential services and protections that will help save lives among Kenya’s most vulnerable urban slum communities.” Kennedy Odede, CEO & Founder, SHOFCO.

“We are incredibly grateful for Paxful’s contribution to our hunger relief efforts. The need for food is dire in all impoverished communities across South Africa during these trying times.

Many of the children who attend our educare centres are dependent on the nutritional meals provided to them daily at our centres, and with schools closed, in some cases, children are going hungry.

Paxful’s donation will have a positive impact on children in need, their families and under-served communities at large,” says Tracey Chambers, CEO of GROW with Educare Centres.

Bitcoin (BTC) was founded to become a peer-to-peer decentralized digital currency and with its ethos lying in connecting a disconnected world, its use in philanthropic ventures between peers is a logical step for the digital asset.

By allotting the use of more than fiat currencies in global donations, bitcoin has the ability to expand the reach of charities worldwide.

To have your donation matched by Paxful to bring necessities to millions of people across Africa, you can visit: builtwithbitcoin.org

To stay up to date with our journey from deliveries to the growth of the fund, you can visit the Paxful blog: paxful.com/blog