Minutes after Russia announced a “special military operation” in Ukraine, effectively declaring war on the Eastern European country, Vitalik Buterin, a Russian-Canadian cofounder of the Ethethereum B blockchain, criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin on Twitter.
Buterin Speaks Out
Buterin said on Wednesday evening that he was “very upset” by Putin’s choice to start a war instead of finding a peaceful solution to Russia’s issue with Ukraine.
Vitalik tweeted in Russian:
“Very upset by Putin’s decision to abandon the possibility of a peaceful solution to the dispute with Ukraine and go to war instead. This is a crime against the Ukrainian and Russian people.”
“I want to wish everyone security, although I know that there will be no security,” the Russian-Canadian crypto co-founder wrote, concluding his statement with “Glory to Ukraine”.
Please remember: Ethereum is neutral. I am not.
— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) February 24, 2022
On Wednesday evening, CNN reported a “constant stream of explosions” in multiple Ukrainian towns, including Kyiv, the country’s capital, and Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city. “Subways are packed, streets are also, people [are gathering]Spend time with your loved ones [trying] to flee,” Oleksiy Sorokin, a correspondent for the Ukrainian outlet Kyiv Independent, tweeted. According to the Ukrainian State Air Traffic Services Enterprise, Ukraine had also shut down its civilian airspace due to the serious threats to the safety of aviation in this current environment.
Buterin has spoken out on a number of occasions about philosophy, geopolitics, and the use of blockchain technology for “public goods” such as scientific research, news dissemination, and the reduction of various hazards to humanity.
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Crypto Market tumbles
Following Putin’s announcement, cryptocurrency prices plummeted. Bitcoin prices fell 3.8% to $35.031.86 Thursday morning. Ethereum prices dropped 5.2 percent, to $2,388.98. Bitcoin prices have fallen by around 20% over the last week while Ethereum’s has fallen 22%. This undermines the notion that cryptocurrency can be used to withstand the geopolitical crisis that could affect traditional financial markets.
However, the values of stablecoins, such as USDT and BUSD, rose slightly on the same day. The demand for safer haven assets is increasing, which has led to a rise in stablecoin trading volume.
USD/ETH trades starting at $2.5k TradingView
The stock market, along with the cryptocurrency industry, has plummeted while oil prices are up. Russian stock markets have fallen to their lowest level in over a decade. Oil has gone up in price from $60 to $100 per barrel.
This will put downward pressure on higher-correlation digital coin with geopolitical worries for a while. Investors need to consider increased volatility before investing in Ethereum.
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Featured image by Unsplash. Chart from TradingView.com