By Adedapo Adesanya
In an unprecedented response to the devastation caused by the recent earthquake in Morocco, Binance, through its charity arm, has announced plans to airdrop up to $3 million in Binance Coin (BNB) to Binance users identified as living in the areas affected by the tragedy.
Last Friday, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Marakkesh in the North African country and has left close to 3,000 dead, with at least 2,500 injured and a host of others missing.
In the aftermath of natural disasters, people often lose access to traditional banking at the exact moment when extra funds are needed to help cover medical supplies, food, and other essential need, and with crypto transfers gaining ground, it is increasingly being used to deliver financial aid to disaster victims as they provide fast, low-cost, borderless and transparent transactions.
While rescue efforts continue, Binance plans to give $100 in BNB directly to the victims’ Binance account.
Identification of the users will be based on Proof of Address (POA) completed before September 9, 2023, in Marrakesh-Safi Province, which has suffered the most significant impact.
For those who haven’t completed the POA, Binance noted that if this can be done before September 30, 2023, it will donate $25 in BNB directly to their Binance account.
The charity will also expand across Morocco; that is, those who are not in the affected area will get $10 in BNB.
In a statement, the crypto exchange noted, “We expect our efforts will reach around 70,000 Binance users living in Morocco. Our funds will reach our users starting 12th September 2023.”
Speaking on this, Binance founder and CEO, Mr Changpeng Zhao, said: “The impact of the earthquake on the Moroccan people is devastating. We hope we can bring some support to those affected. For Moroccan users who receive these donations but are unimpacted by the earthquake, we ask them to pass the funds on to those most in need.”
Binance has also launched a public donation address for anyone to donate.
“For everything we receive on this address, we will donate the total crypto amount to an authorized NGO (to be named soon) to help people in need. Donations to the Emergency Earthquake Appeal will be accepted in BNB, BTC, ETH, USDC, USDT, or BUSD,” it said in the statement.