Earlier this week Nairametrics reported the recent surge in the price of Ethereum which surpassed $4,000. Ethereum is widely regarded as the next best alternative to Bitcoin and it has been living up to that expectation.
Behind the success of this altcoin, is 27-years old Vitalik Buterin who is the co-founder of Ethereum and the world’s youngest crypto billionaire. Buterin recently made headlines when he donated over $1bn worth of cryptocurrency to India’s Covid-19 relief fund.
In this article, we profile the billionaire and how his cryptocurrency journey started.
READ: Ether on record high as European Investment Bank launches digital bond on Ethereum
Vitalik Buterin
Vitalik Buterin has an interesting mix of skills and personality. He is a Russian Canadian national who is a prolific writer and programmer. His cryptocurrency journey started from the editorial side of things when he co-founded and launched Bitcoin Magazine in 2011. This was followed by the launching of Ethereum in 2014 after receiving a Thiel fellowship funding.
He co-founded Ethereum blockchain technology with Gavin Wood and Joseph Lubin. His goal was to provide new cases for blockchain technology, moving beyond the financial applications of Bitcoin. Ethereum works as a blockchain-based operating system where anyone can create and run smart contracts and decentralized applications.
READ: Why Ethereum could make you rich
The Ethereum blockchain turned out to be a massive success and the Ethereum coin was trading at $3,666 at the time of writing this article. It is the most valuable crypto after Bitcoin and it has been quite stable.
Vitalik Buterin’s net worth
Vitalik Buterin is worth well over $1bn currently. His main Ether wallet which he disclosed in 2018 contains about 333,520 ETH. This is worth over $1bn at Ethereum’s current price of $3,666.
Recently he made headlines when he donated a meme coin worth $1.5 billion to several non-profit organizations, including $1 billion to a COVID-19 relief fund in India. This is lauded as one of the largest-ever individual philanthropic efforts.
VItalik Buterin’s Philantropy
Vitalik Buterin is a philanthropist at heart with numerous philanthropic efforts to his name.
In 2017, he donated $763,970 worth of Ethereum to the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, which aims at ensuring artificial intelligence technologies have a positive impact on humanity.
In 2018, he donated $2.4 million worth of Ethereum to the SENSE Research Foundation, which develops solutions for health issues associated with ageing.
He also donated $1 million to charity for Ugandan Refugees.
Wonderful feat to your glory at just 27 vitalik…congratulations
Please how can I start this business.. any ideas?