The Wikimedia Foundation, which owns and operates Wikipedia, announced that it will no longer accept cryptocurrency as a form of donation payment effective Sunday, May 1. The firm made the decision to discontinue accepting the payment method based on feedback it received from the community. The community also put it to a vote, with each stating their reasons for and against cryptocurrency. The Wikimedia Foundation, also announced closure of its BitPay account. This action will make it impossible for the organization to accept cryptocurrency going forward.

The Wikimedia Foundation first began accepting cryptocurrency in 2014. Lisa Seitz-Gruwell, who is the Chief Advancement Officer at The Wikimedia Foundation introduced donating via cryptocurrency as "simple and inclusive".  At the time, there were 13 payment options, with Bitcoin becoming the 14th payment method. The decision to accept Bitcoin was done after careful research, advice from knowledgable outside entities, and a partnership with Coinbase.

Bitcoin at the time, wasn't as well known as it is today. The cryptocurrency was trending at around $300 for one coin towards the tail-end of 2014. But in a matter of years, the value of the coin would skyrocket. At the same time, forcing into the public eye. This would also increase its volatility. The value of Bitcoin has had its fair share of ups and downs. Its peak came in at $66,974 during October 2022. As of May 2022, the price of Bitcoin sits at around $38,500 USD.

Although there are those that are firm believers in Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, there are still a large portion that are skeptics. There is good reason for this. For the time being the Wikimedia Foundation will no longer accept cryptocurrency donations. It will close this chapter. The cryptocurrency space is always evolving and there are certainly big changes coming. With these changes, there is always the possibility that cryptocurrency can once again become an accepted form of payment for your donations on Wikipedia.


Source: Wikipedia
Via: Gizmodo