A billionaire, a cryptocurrency, and a disaster in India

Crypto philanthropy is a burgeoning field, and one with lots of unique complications. Take the case of Vitalik Buterin, the programmer who co-founded the cryptocurrency ethereum, and his recent donation to a charity in India to help respond to the Covid-19 crisis there. He gave $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency, including $1 billion in a memecoin called Shiba Inu coin. And, well, that gift didn’t work out as planned. Former Recode senior reporter Teddy Schleifer discusses what happened with Buterin’s donation and what it might mean for other crypto donations like it. Learn more: Read Teddy’s story here.  Emily has a story on the current crypto craze here. – Tell Me More is hosted by Emily Stewart and produced by Sofi LaLonde. Enjoyed this episode? Rate Tell Me More ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple    What do you want to learn about on Tell Me More? Send your requests and questions to tellmemore@voxmedia.com. We read every email! Podcasts.   Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of Tell Me More by subscribing in your favorite podcast app. Support Tell Me More by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices