Nonprofit GiveDirectly Receives $1 Million Donation from OmiseGo and Ethereum Creator Vitalik Buterin

A pilot program in 2017 reached 4,400 households, affecting 21,500 people total. Each participant received a single payment of $650. The recipients spent the money on education, small business ventures, and immediate needs like food and medical care. The organization plans to expand the program over the coming year.

Paul Niehaus, Michael Faye, Rohit Wanchoo, and Jeremy Shapiro started GiveDirectly in 2009 while studying economic development at Harvard and MIT. The organization opened publicly in 2011. They wanted to find the most effective way to transfer money to the poor. Mobile technology in developing countries made cash transfers secure and efficient. The approach bypassed traditional charity overhead. GiveDirectly reports that 85 cents of every dollar reaches recipients.

The organization will convert the cryptocurrency donation to Ugandan currency and distribute it through mobile transfer or bank deposit. The organization publishes a live tracking system so donors can monitor how their money affects recipients' lives. Staff members verify that households meet eligibility criteria before transfers occur.

Jun Hasegawa, OmiseGo's chief executive, wrote in a blog post: "The crypto economy has grown immensely over the last year, bringing a great deal of wealth to many people and organizations within the ecosystem. In part we simply see an exciting opportunity to share that wealth. We hope the fortunes made in the crypto space will lead not to extravagant lifestyles but to extravagant generosity."