Ukraine-based blockchain firm reports company ‘stronger’ one year into war

According to CEO Sergey Vasylchuk, staking supplier Everstake is continuing to determination guardant contempt the continuing subject struggle betwixt Ukraine and Russia.

Exactly 1 twelvemonth agone contiguous — Feb. 24, 2022 — Russian subject forces invaded galore areas of Ukraine successful what has go 1 of the largest conflicts successful modern Europe since World War II. In the past 12 months, much than 8,000 civilians person died, galore Ukrainian cities person been shelled — with astatine slightest 1 astir leveled — and the state continues to beryllium astatine hazard of rocket attacks and crushed invasions.

Vasylchuk said that anterior to Feb. 24, 2022, helium had been making preparations to mitigate the hazard to Everstake and its employees, but determination were inactive months erstwhile galore radical based successful Ukraine were not capable to enactment for assorted reasons. The Everstake CEO said helium felt liable for the livelihood of astir 300 radical — astir 100 workers and their families.

“This [...] forced maine — I’m the absorption — to determination forward,” said Vasylchuk. “We enactment mostly instantly. [...] We had a batch of assistance from partners, from different nations, from friends.”

Everstake helped motorboat the crypto donation platform Aid for Ukraine successful March 2022, unneurotic with Ukrainian authorities officials, Kuna and crypto speech FTX. The website reported much than $60 cardinal successful crypto and fiat contributions, going toward initiatives including subject equipment, aesculapian cogwheel and humanitarian projects.

“Essentially, [these donations were] a tiny driblet into the fund of what we presently need, but astatine slightest it was something,” said Vasylchuk. “Bottom line: Everstake became overmuch stronger.”

According to the CEO, galore of Everstake’s employees person continued to enactment from exigency shelters astatine assorted points passim the past 12 months, facing sound from adjacent explosions, nonaccomplishment of electrical powerfulness and adjusting to the caller “normal”:

“Right now, I can’t ideate what would scare us, what things could situation us, to impressment america — similar ‘this is simply a disaster.’ We decidedly could beryllium acceptable for thing close now.”

Amid attacks from Russian subject forces and with a workforce dispersed crossed aggregate countries, Everstake employees besides faced online rumors and conspiracy theories — perchance promulgated by Russia’s propaganda instrumentality — that its level was utilized for politically motivated wealth laundering. Among the theories pushed connected societal media was 1 suggesting that Aid for Ukraine’s funds had been funneled to the United States Democratic Party owed to the site’s relation with FTX and its erstwhile CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s governmental donations.

Related: Ukrainian pharmacies alteration crypto payments via Binance Pay

Though Vasylchuk described the algorithms starring to the online attacks arsenic “very professional,” helium added that helium was inactive shocked that immoderate radical successful the U.S. were duped into spreading the rumors. North Carolina Representative Madison Cawthorn mentioned the conspiracy mentation to his thousands of Twitter followers, and immoderate quality outlets picked up connected the story.

February 2020: USA is calling each Americans to permission Ukraine ☠️
February 2023: USA is sending the American President to Ukraine ‍♂️
What is going on?

— Sergey | Everstake (@sergattic) February 20, 2023

The Everstake CEO compared the “unlivable” conditions for galore businesses successful Ukraine to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s enforcement actions successful the United States, citing the agency’s caller crackdown connected Kraken’s staking program. Though galore parts of Ukraine are inactive nether Russian subject occupation, U.S. President Joe Biden secretly traveled to Kyiv connected Feb. 20 to sojourn Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky.