Binance donated $200,000 worth of cryptocurrency in 2018, and today that amount is worth millions of dollars.
Coinbase’s Conor Grogan called on Maltese citizens to inform the government about the funds.
Cryptocurrency donations to terminal cancer patients in Malta have seen astonishing growth since their inception in 2018. Coinbase executive Conor Grogan revealed that the $200,000 in BNB donated by Binance not only remains unclaimed and unused, but has increased significantly in value.
Thanks to the increase in the value of BNB, the native cryptocurrency of the Binance network, The funds delivered have been revalued to approximately 39 million dollars.
In this way, Grogan turned to the social network declared: «In 2018, Binance and cryptocurrency users donated $200,000 in BNB to terminally ill cancer patients in Malta. The funds were never withdrawn and remain intact, now worth $39 million thanks to BNB appreciation! Citizens of Malta, please inform your government that these funds are accessible.”
The donations were made at a key time for Malta, when The Mediterranean island made progress in the regulation of cryptocurrencies. As reported by CriptoNoticias, in 2018 the Maltese parliament approved three fundamental projects: the Digital Innovation Act, the Innovative Technology Arrangements and Services Act, and the Virtual Financial Assets Act.
However, by 2020 the situation seemed to have changed drastically. According to data from the Malta Financial Authority (MFSA), approximately 70% of companies that completed the first stage of applying for a financial services license failed to obtain one.
It is worth noting that, in 2025, the regulatory landscape in the country will aligned with the Markets in Cryptoassets Regulation (MiCA) of the European Union. The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) now supervises crypto asset service providers (CASPs) with a focus on investor protection, anti-money laundering (AML) compliance and innovation, which has enabled the granting of licenses to exchanges.
While Binance fulfilled its commitment to donate $200,000 to the Malta Community Chest Fund through its Blockchain Charity Foundation, then small contributions from users were added of cryptocurrencies aimed at supporting cancer patients and people with disabilities.
The exponential growth of these donations shows how cryptocurrencies can generate a significant impact on social causes, as long as there are clear mechanisms for the funds to be claimed and used by those who really need them, guaranteeing that the initial good intention is translated into concrete help for the beneficiaries.