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How Bitcoin Helps Fix Foreign Aid Corruption

03/02/2022 by Idelto Editor

Aid intended to help those in developing countries is often siphoned off with ill intent — but bitcoin can help remedy this.

Let’s talk about the humanitarian case for bitcoin — specifically, how it solves issues of government corruption and how it improves the effectiveness of foreign aid.

Starting in the mid to late 20th century, western countries began investing heavily in foreign aid. Over the past five decades, wealthy countries have donated more than $4 trillion to poorer countries, with 60% coming from governments and the rest coming from private NGOs, private companies and charitable foundations.

While this charity and showing of altruism is inspiring and does a lot of good, there are many obstacles in the distribution of aid that prevent it from fully achieving its goal.

The first big obstacle is that foreign aid is often distributed by corrupt, autocratic governments. These rulers roll money off the top, giving it to themselves, their friends, and patrons before giving it to their citizens.

The most brazen case of foreign aid corruption is that of the former president of the Congo, Mobutu Seko.

Image source

He stole foreign aid and bought several mansions across Europe and built an airport at his Congolese home, all while his citizens suffered in a deteriorating economy and abject poverty.

And in cases when money is not pilfered illegally, aid can be siphoned off slowly through vast bureaucratic middlemen.

Studies suggest that the leakage rate of foreign aid can range:

“In one Oxfam study, researchers could only verify that 7% of $28 million in U.S. aid meant for Ghana made it to its destination between 2013 and 2015.” – Alex Gladstein.

In other cases, some corrupt, dictatorial governments will block foreign aid, such as the case with countries like Venezuela. Recently, western countries like the United States were supplying aid to revolutionary groups in Venezuela, and in retaliation, the current regime blocked foreign aid to their citizens and shut down the banking system, preventing people from getting the resources they needed.

You May Be Wondering — How Does Bitcoin Fix The Issue Of Foreign Aid Corruption?

Well, Bitcoin cuts out the middleman when making transactions. With bitcoin, there is no need for governments or banks. When operating with fiat, money has to transfer between various governments and corporations before reaching the end recipient. And through every third party that handles the transaction, money is taken off the top and is exposed to possible theft. But when we use bitcoin, you can donate money directly to the end recipient peer-to-peer, with no middleman necessary. This is because of the blockchain. Whenever a transaction is made, it is recorded on the blockchain, which then can be accessed by the relevant parties. And the information on the blockchain is stored across a series of computers, keeping everything decentralized.

This decentralized, free system undermines the need for a middleman to manage transactions. As a result, it is impossible for corrupt foriegn governments to interfere with aid meant for the people. So, if you want to donate to the pro-democracy movement in Venezuela, you can do so with bitcoin, without having to worry about the current regime stealing your money.

While the idea of vast government corruption and bank account freezes seem out of the realm for most Americans and western populations, these are problems that billions of people around the world have to endure. Bitcoin is increasingly becoming a beacon of hope for freedom fighters and impoverished communities.

This is a guest post by Siby Suriyan. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc. or Bitcoin Magazine.

Filed Under: Aid, Bitcoin Magazine, business, Corruption, donations, English, Humanitarian, Marty's Bent, Opinion

Local Council Member in Ukraine Declares 124 BTC and 500 Tesla Shares

14/11/2021 by Idelto Editor

Local Council Member in Ukraine Declares 124 BTC and 500 Tesla Shares

A government official in Rivne region of Ukraine owns close to $8 million in cryptocurrency and 500 Tesla shares, his declaration shows. The news comes as another Ukrainian lawmaker in Kyiv has found it hard to prove possession of the crypto holdings on her asset statement.

Ukraine Officials Declare Crypto Assets, Fail to Provide Proof of Ownership

Crypto investments have enjoyed a growing popularity among Ukrainian politicians in recent years, mandatory asset statements have revealed. According to recent media reports, a member of the Virovsky Village Council in the western Rivne Oblast has declared having 124 BTC worth almost $8 million in today’s prices.

Vladimir Pachesny acquired the coins in early 2013 for 73,920 hryvnia at the time of purchase, a little over $2,800, using the latest exchange rate of the inflated Ukrainian fiat currency. In 2019, the 36-year-old local deputy also bought 500 shares of the U.S. electric vehicle company Tesla which pushed crypto prices up this year with its announcements of accepting and owning bitcoin.

Pachesny is neither the first, nor the richest cryptocurrency investor among officials in Ukraine, which has established itself as a leader in crypto adoption. A report from April unveiled that government workers and politicians held 46,351 BTC worth 75 billion hryvnias at the time (more than $2.6 billion), with a member of the Dnipro City Council, Mishalov Dmitrovich, having the largest stash of 18,000 BTC.

In their 2020 declarations, public figures have admitted to owning a total of 46 351 BTC and various other digital currencies, including ETH, LTC, BCH, and XMR, according to numbers compiled by the Opendatabot platform which monitors public registries in Ukraine. Not all of them, however, have been able to provide the necessary documents to prove they are in control of the coins. This spring, the National Agency for Prevention of Corruption (NAPC) promised to verify the numbers.

Another Ukrainian MP Cannot Account for Owned Cryptocurrency

Ukrainian media reported in September that a parliamentarian from President Zelensky’s Servant of the People party had failed to prove his digital holdings. Data filed by the lawmaker revealed that his wife, Maria Saltykova, had 42 BTC last year but NAPC said he had not submitted any documentation confirming the accuracy of this information. The deputy only explained that the crypto was stored on a hardware wallet that disappeared when his car got stolen earlier this year.

Gurin’s is not an isolated case in Ukraine. A recent article by the “Slovo i Dilo” portal showed that another member of the Verkhovna Rada, Anna Skorokhod, did not give the NAPC a proof that she actually owned the cryptocurrencies she had previously reported to the institution.

In her last declaration, Skorokhod stated she had 44 BTC, 130 ETH and 135 ETC while her husband at the time, Alexey Alyakin, kept in his possession some 118 ВТС, 78 ЕТН and 350 ETC. The Ukrainian MP gave “general explanations regarding the obtaining and ownership of the cryptocurrency without providing documents certifying the facts of the acquisition and the availability of the cryptocurrency as of the end of the reporting period.”

The cryptocurrencies’ value has been estimated at more than 2.7 million hryvnia (over $106,000) at the time of purchase. Skorokhod told the NAPC that due to her insufficient knowledge about the digital money, all operations with the coins were carried out by her husband on her behalf. She added she had no access to the keys or any accompanying documents after their divorce.

Virtual Assets of Ukraine, a public organization, and the Blockchain4Ukraine association, uniting lawmakers from different political factions in the Ukrainian parliament, have proposed to introduce a requirement that would increase transparency as far as officials’ asset statements are concerned. The two entities insist that public officials should provide the addresses of their cryptocurrency wallets on their declarations.

Do you think Ukrainian politicians will be able to account for all their cryptocurrency holdings? Share your thoughts on the subject in the comments section below.

Filed Under: asset declarations, asset statement, BCH, Bitcoin, BTC, Corruption, crypto, Cryptocurrencies, cryptocurrency, declaration, declarations, deputy, English, ETH, Ethereum, holdings, lawmaker, Member, NAPC, News, News Bitcoin, Officials, Ownership, parliament, politicians, public figures, public officials, Rada, shares, stocks, Tesla, Ukraine, Ukrainians, Verkhovna Rada, village council

Salvadoran Court of Accounts to Investigate Government’s Bitcoin ATM Buys, Chivo Kiosk Construction

17/09/2021 by Idelto Editor

According to reports stemming from the Salvadoran Court of Accounts, the regulatory body is planning to investigate the government’s bitcoin automated teller machine (ATM) purchases and Chivo kiosk construction. The investigation follows the recent protest in El Salvador against the adoption of bitcoin as the crowd set fire to a bitcoin ATM.

Human Rights Group Cristosal Files Complaint Against Nayib Bukele’s Regime


On September 15, a large group of protestors took to the streets in San Salvador to protest the new bitcoin law implemented by Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele. It’s not the first time protests against the law have happened, but this time around a bitcoin ATM was set ablaze. Following the protest, El Salvador’s Court of Accounts is looking into a complaint about the Bukele regime’s bitcoin ATM buys and kiosk construction. A document was witnessed by Reuters staff and the complaint was filed by a human rights and transparency organization called Cristosal.

The complaint Cristosal filed with the Salvadoran Court of Accounts is against six Board of Directors members of the Bitcóin Trust. Furthermore, the complaint is also against the Salvadoran secretariat of Commerce and Investments and members of the Finance and Economy ministries.

The Human Rights Foundation’s (HRF) chief strategy officer Alex Gladstein discusses the pros and cons tied to the new bitcoin legal tender law. The HRF representative Gladstein’s entire Twitter thread on the subject can be read here.

The Court of Accounts (CoA) says the complaint was received on September 10, five days before the protest and torched ATM. The CoA can impose sanctions against Salvadoran government officials. Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele has been called a dictator and has been investigated before.

Cristosal Says CoA Complaint Has Been Accepted


For instance, in May Bukele’s New Ideas Party fired several Supreme Court members and the attorney general. Twenty government institutions linked to the Bukele administration were under investigation for manipulation and corruption. He then fired all those who were involved in the investigation. The news publication El Faro also accused Bukele of secretly negotiating a deal with Mara Salvatrucha, the most powerful gang in El Salvador. The latest investigation stemming from the CoA and Cristosal notes that an analysis of the bitcoin situation will take place.

Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele is considered a “dictator” and has been referred to in that way by many global leaders and news outlets. Bukele has been accused of being friendly with the largest Salvadoran gang Mara Salvatrucha and members of Bukele’s family were recently accused of planning to launch a stablecoin.

“Having admitted the complaint, it will proceed to carry out the legal analysis report and, in a timely manner, forward such report to the General Audit Coordination,” the CoA document reviewed by Reuters notes. The news outlet detailed that an unnamed source from Cristosal says that the complaint written to the CoA “has been accepted.” Moreover, the CoA has the power to start criminal proceedings if the investigation into the bitcoin ATM purchases and kiosk construction uncovers suspicious elements.

What do you think about Cristosal’s complaint and the CoA starting an investigation into the Bukele regime’s bitcoin affairs? Let us know what you think about this situation in the comments section below.

Filed Under: Alex Gladstein, Bitcoin, Bitcoin Law, Bitcoin Protest, Bitcoin Tender, Bitcoin Tender Law, BTC tender law, CoA, Corruption, Court of Accounts, Cristosal, Dictator, el salvador, El Salvador's president, English, HRF, human rights foundation, Nayib Bukele, Nayib Bukele tender law, News, News Bitcoin, protesting the tender law, protestors, Resistance Group, Salvadoran Court of Accounts, Salvadorans, Supreme Court

Why Every Single Person Needs Bitcoin

09/06/2021 by Idelto Editor

The humanitarian aspects of bitcoin overshadow the nominal value focused on by many westerners.

It’s become really easy to get lost with all the volatility and headlines present in Bitcoin lately. The various altcoins are becoming more and more distracting, albeit ever-useless, and new entrants into the space continue to make us forget the real reason why we are here. Unfortunately, the people behind these schemes simply don’t understand what a crucial time we are living through.

Bitcoin is a fix to the current corrupt system.

Traditionally, governments collect some percentage of goods and services produced and manufactured in their respective economies in the form of taxation (the inescapable evil which everybody hates). The state takes the taxes from productivity, then collects and reinvests this into the country. These investments could be anything, from infrastructure to the military. The original purpose and function of all governments (past and present) and taxation is to protect the people, to protect the country, and to build out the infrastructure. Ideally, there is an alignment of incentives where what is good for the people, is also good for the government. By reinvesting these tax receipts back into the economy, the country grows and is able to modernize its infrastructure, thus allowing everyone to become more productive.

Higher productivity coupled with reinvestment of tax revenue grows an economy and thus grows its overall tax base. A government can collect more taxes the more production grows. Organic growth of an economy disincentivizes the government from raising tax rates.

Today however, our economies are being heavily driven by central banks. Enter “money printer go BRRR!” Our economies are driven by excessive quantitative easing. Rather than funding government spending with tax revenue and keeping a balanced budget, central banks put up new money to buy government debt, thus allowing the government to spend beyond its means. The key issue with a central bank driven economy where the government can have its central bank simply print up new money is that at this point, the state no longer has to care about reinvesting tax revenue into the economy, the infrastructure or the education system in order to benefit the people and grow the tax base. The state no longer has to rely solely on taxes. It can simply utilize as much new money from the central bank as needed. Look at the current US federal budget for the fiscal year 2021 and ask yourself “HOW is this sustainable?”

Under this system, taxes don’t go away. They go way up. Wealth and savings wither away through “2% annual inflation”. Under this central bank driven economy, the alignment of incentives between the government and the people is broken. With monetization, assets such as stocks and real estate go up in price over time. As a result, we get more wealth inequality, as those who own these assets become even wealthier. The people who don’t own assets have no hedge against excessive money printing as their costs of living increase. Senseless killing and wars are financed by governments via their central banks. Wealth inequality drives social unrest. Instead of governments being honest with their citizenry, they rather lie and pit them against one another.

When I talk about Bitcoin, it’s not about “number go up” or “have fun staying poor” (although these quips may be humorous) but about buying and holding bitcoin as an imperative. It’s a way of fighting the central bank driven economy. Bitcoin is the one unique way by which we can protest against — and possibly overthrow — this system.

There is a lot of deep thought that has gone into and still flows into Bitcoin. How the Bitcoin network operates is immaculate and majestic all on its own. Bitcoin is still a mystery unfolding before our eyes. I’d go as far as to compare it to how chaotic, yet awe-inspiring, our universe is. You simply don’t see that in other projects. As Alex Gladstein states in his amazing article, “87% of the planet is born into autocracy or considerably less trustworthy currencies. 4.3 billion people live under authoritarianism, and 1.2 billion people live under double or triple-digit inflation.” People like Paul Krugman, Charlie Munger and western elites anger me whenever they lend their thoughts on Bitcoin to the rest of us. They enjoy a degree of civil liberties and stable currencies most of the world simply hasn’t. In the summer of 2018, I visited the Palestinian territories. I have seen what our current central bank driven economic system has done the world over.

Fix the money, fix the world.

This is a guest post by Paul Opoku. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC, Inc. or Bitcoin Magazine.

Filed Under: Bitcoin Magazine, Corruption, culture, English, Humanitarian, Sound Money

Report Claims Ukrainian Officials Hold Over $2.6 Billion in Bitcoin

10/04/2021 by Idelto Editor

Ukrainian Officials Hold Over $2.66 Billion Worth in Bitcoin, Report Shows

The latest declarations from Ukrainian public officials revealed a billion-dollar amount of money they allegedly own in bitcoin. An online incentive gathered data from 791,872 state employees and 652 respondents disclosed their crypto holdings.

The Biggest Crypto Holder in the Report Has 18,000 BTC

According to the Opendatabot site, officials currently hold a total of 46,351 BTC, which is worth over 75 billion hryvnias ($2.66 billion) as of press time. The declaration’s campaign ended on March 31, 2021.

But bitcoin is not the only cryptocurrency found among the collective filings of Ukraine state employees. Per the report, ethereum (ETH), litecoin (LTC), cardano (ADA), stellar (XLM), IOTA, bitcoin cash (BCH), and bitcoin gold (BTG) are the other cryptos in which the officials have invested.

Most Ukrainian crypto-holding state employees work in city councils, the Ministry of Defense, and for the National Police, said Opendatabot. However, there are also crypto holders who work in the prosecutor’s office and village councils across Ukraine.

So far, the official with the highest amount of bitcoins is Mishalov Vyacheslav Dmitrovich, a Deputy from the Dnipro City Council as he held 18,000 BTC at the time of the filings.

In the wake of the Opendatabot’s results, the Minister of Digital Transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov, praised the collective filings, saying that it shows how the country’s officials are becoming more “progressive and far-sighted investors than we thought.”

Anti-Corruption Agency Issues Warning on Officials Who Could Have Provided Inaccurate Data

But the fact that a report like this has been made public was not well received by everyone in the country.

Sergiy Petukhov, the head of the Mandatory Inspections Department at the National Agency for Prevention of Corruption, stated that his office conducted 250 checks this year, including bitcoin’s holdings state employees. He added that some officials claimed their filings had mistakes and warned about Opendatabot’s results:

If we find that the information provided about the possession of cryptocurrency is inaccurate – this is the basis for administrative or criminal liability.

Ukrainian officials are required to reveal their assets in an official electronic declarations process designed to reduce corruption.

Opendatabot is a service that monitors the registration data of Ukrainian companies and officials.

What do you think about this report on the bitcoin holdings of Ukrainian officials? Let us know in the comments section below.

Filed Under: Assets, Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash, Corruption, declaration, English, government officials, News, News Bitcoin, Transparency, Ukraine, Ukraine Bitcoin

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