Crypto donations: The misconceptions holding nonprofits bac

Cryptocurrency has had a spectacular journey over the years, evolving from a niche technology to a major global financial phenomenon. As of today, about 6.8% of the global population owns digital coins. There are plenty of reasons why this asset class has captured so much interest worldwide, including its potential for high returns, its ideological and technological appeal, and its accessibility. Even crypto’s use cases have evolved tremendously. For example, many people keep an eye on Render price on the Binance exchange because this project addresses a tangible issue in the digital content industry: the significant time and cost required for rendering complex animations, 3D visuals, and visual effects, with its clear utility being a potential catalyst for price growth.

Crypto has pushed the boundaries of what’s possible in privacy, financial access, and transparency, opening the door to significant opportunities for people and organizations alike that were left out of traditional systems. And in doing so, it has also evolved into a powerful tool for philanthropy in today’s world, with many crypto owners supporting nonprofit organizations to address the most pressing challenges. Unfortunately, many nonprofits are reluctant to embrace crypto because of misconceptions about this asset class they still hold. There’s a lot that you can miss out on as a nonprofit by not saying yes to crypto, so we’re here to help you separate fact from fiction.  Ready to debunk those myths?

Myth No.1: Cryptocurrency doesn’t have real-world value

Back in its early days, it’s true that you couldn’t do much with crypto. But that’s changed thanks to the growing acceptance of this asset class all across nations, merchants, and even nonprofits. Now that people are increasingly familiar with crypto and it’s widely used, it’s much more valuable than it was. Besides, Bitcoin has a value point in its built-in scarcity: there will be only 21 million Bitcoins in circulation, and the government won’t be able to print more, unlike fiat money.

It’s only natural not to want to embrace crypto if you think there will only be scarcity in the market, but that’s really not the case. On the contrary, given that many millennials and Gen Zers hold some form of crypto, nonprofits can tap into this abundance like never before.

Myth No.2: Cryptocurrency donations are only for tech-savvy nonprofits

There’s a common belief that only nonprofits with great technological expertise can benefit from crypto philanthropy, but that’s not true. Any nonprofit organization, regardless of its skill level, can accept crypto donations through a specialized donation platform. These companies offer user-friendly solutions and handle all the complexity of the process, giving you peace of mind. They are designed to be as simple and intuitive as an online shopping checkout page. Besides, it’s possible (and advisable, actually) to start with a passive approach (e.g., adding the crypto donation option on your website) and scale as your team gains more knowledge about crypto and is more comfortable with it.

Accepting crypto donations doesn’t have anything to do with a nonprofit's size or skills, but rather, it’s about having an open mind and making a little bit of effort to post online so that people know you’re accepting crypto.

Myth No.3: Cryptocurrency donors are hard to tap into

Actually, it’s pretty much the opposite. Finding crypto donors is relatively easy today because most of them are digital natives. If you spend time on X or join Discord, you will connect with lots of Millennials and GenZ owning crypto and wanting to use it for the greater good. Besides engaging with these online communities, you need to make it clear to people that you accept crypto donations, because even if there are many people who would want to donate their crypto, they won’t do it unless you let them know that’s even an option, right? You’d be surprised how many cash donors also own crypto and would always prefer to use it for donations, thanks to the tax incentives.

Note that if you want to receive donations from crypto holders, you need to set up an infrastructure that enables you to do that, like establishing internal policies, creating a dedicated digital wallet, and so on.

Myth No.4: Cryptocurrency is too risky for nonprofits due to volatility

No one can deny that crypto is volatile. That’s just the nature of the market, and unfortunately, the quick price swings can be hard on some investors. But this volatility is also the very thing that made so many people millionaires by purchasing crypto, and in turn, contributed to crypto philanthropy throughout the years.

Still, nonprofits that are concerned about the risks that crypto involves can enable auto sell and auto-conversion functionality by looking for a crypto donation platform with these features. This way, they have peace of mind knowing their crypto donations are converted to cash right away, eliminating the volatility risks.  

The bottom line

Crypto continues to break barriers all across the world and in all sorts of ways, empowering individuals to create ecosystems that work in their favor, and those who are shaping this ecosystem do more than just invest in innovation: they’re also making an impact on society. The people leading the crypto movement are younger, more digital-native, and committed to playing their part in addressing global problems in the world. Their strong belief in financial freedom and decentralization extends to generosity: they want to give because they believe crypto has this power to transform society. Then there are donors driven by strategy, who are attracted to the tax benefits that crypto offers. Either way, nonprofits can unlock wealth by understanding donors' motivations and connecting with them in different ways.

It is time to stop believing these myths or viewing crypto as a technical challenge reserved only for nonprofits with more knowledge in this area. Ultimately, it’s a strategic opportunity to future-proof funding models and expand their impact, so the question isn’t whether nonprofits should accept crypto donations, but how quickly they can implement systems to embrace this groundbreaking fundraising evolution.