In recent months, there almost no major event plays out without crypto playing a role in the news coverage. The war in Ukraine is the most recent example. It is notable that respectable, conservative media outlets have made positive judgments about the role of crypto. Examples are institutions such as the Financial Times and The Economist.
An overview of some key publications from the mainstream media.
- Financial Times: How Ukraine embraced cryptocurrencies in response to war: in the article, the FT argues that the war acted as an accelerator for Ukraine's already existing ambitions to create an innovative, blockchain-friendly economy.
- The Economist: Sanctions-dodgers hoping to use crypto to evade detection are likely to be disappointed: according to The Economist, there is little evidence that sanctions are being evaded by crypto. While donations in crypto help the government in Ukraine.
- Forbes: Ukraine Demonstrates That Cryptocurrency Is A Potent Tool For Marshaling Grassroots Support: the article discusses crypto exchange donations, the Ukrainian government's airdrop, and the UkraineDAO by Russian band Pussy Riot.
- CNBC: Ukrainian refugee flees to Poland with $2,000 in bitcoin on a USB drive: the piece highlights how important the speed of crypto transactions is in war situations. And that it can be done peer-to-peer.
- Wall Street Journal: How Cryptocurrency Is Helping Ukraine: 'It’s a godsend in a country that needs money and lacks functioning banks.'
Between all the stories about excessive energy consumption and ransomware, it's refreshing to see the media give crypto a big thumbs up. Especially the general public, which knows little about crypto, needs this kind of coverage to wake up from their ill-informed scepticism.
In the words of Forbes:
Crypto has long been viewed as speculative and has its fair share of detractors. Fewer can now challenge its efficacy.