Eurovision Winner Kalush Orchestra Sells Trophy to WhiteBit Exchange to Fund Ukraine’s Army

The proceeds from the sale will go to fund Ukraine’s army and buy three PD-2 drone systems for them.

This year, the prize in the Eurovision song context went to Ukraine which became the center of armed conflict in February. The winner, Kalush Orchestra, auctioned the crystal trophy as a non-fungible token (NFT) that features a microphone and the band. With a bid of as much as $940,000 (500 ETH), the European crypto exchange WhiteBit has won the auction and got the ownership rights for the Eurovision trophy.

WhiteBit Gets Eurovision Trophy and NFT

The exchange has got both the NFT and the crystal trophy, as well as a chance to attend an exclusive meeting and dinner with members of Kalush Orchestra.

The auction started on May 25 at Meta History and lasted for three days. Participants had the option to offer bids in both crypto and fiat currency, with fiat bids directed via Ukraine’s virtual bank Monobank.

Kalush Orchestra band stated:

“We appreciate each and everyone of you who donated to this auction and a special thanks to the team WhiteBit who purchased the trophy for $900,000 and are now the rightful owners.”

The group added:

“The raffle initiative is supported by the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the association of broadcasters that organizes the international Eurovision Song Contest.”

The proceeds from the sale will go to fund Ukraine’s army and buy three PD-2 drone systems for them.

In addition to selling the trophy, Kalush Orchestra’s Oleh Psiuk also raised another $370,000 by raffling his famous pink bucket hat.

Metaverse to Finance Ukraine’s Army

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine started, Ukraine has turned to the metaverse several times to raise funds for its Army. In March, the country’s Ministry of Digital Transformation announced on the government is minting 54 non-fungible tokens to raise awareness and cash to fight against invading Russian forces. To facilitate the sales, the Ministry launched the Meta History: Museum of WarNFT site. Each NFT features a tweet regarding a significant moment in the war, along with an illustration by various Ukrainian artists. One NFT, for example, features a tweet from NATO calling on Russia to halt the invasion on the third day of the war. The accompanying graphic depicts a compass with a bullhorn attached illustrated by artist Alina Kropachova.

Another NFT that features the Ukrainian flag was sold by UkraineDAO. The initiative raised as much as $6.7 million.

Besides, Ukraine has encouraged people to transfer bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on official social media accounts. The effort has given the government access to small donors who don’t need to worry about complex financial agreements or currency conversion.

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Daria Rud

Daria is an economic student interested in the development of modern technologies. She is eager to know as much as possible about cryptos as she believes they can change our view on finance and the world in general.