Donating crypto currency

Giving What We Can supports making donations in cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency(crypto for short) is a type of digital currency, secured by cryptography. Common cryptocurrencies include Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether.

Why donate with crypto in general?

Cryptocurrency is an asset, a little bit like shares in a company. Cryptocurrencies are traded just like shares, and have value that can be expressed in terms of regular (fiat) currencies, like USD or GBP.

You could always just sell some of your cryptocurrency (i.e. converting the value back into a regular currency), and then donate the proceeds. However, it might be better to donate the cryptocurrency instead, for two main reasons.

Firstly, it’s usually more tax-efficient. Because cryptocurrencies are an asset, selling them (and making a profit based on what you originally paid for them) incurs capital gains tax (CGT) in many jurisdictions. If you instead donate the cryptocurrency, you’ll avoid a capital gains event, which means you won’t have to pay CGT on those profits. (This shouldn’t be treated as tax advice, and you should check what the relevant laws are in your country.)

Secondly, it’s simpler: If you already own cryptocurrency, then it saves you the extra hassle of going to an exchange, selling your crypto, waiting to withdraw the proceeds, and then finally making a donation.

Why donate with crypto using Giving What We Can?

Giving What We Can is one of the best places to donate with crypto.

  • Lowest possible fees – many crypto donation platforms charge processing fees of between 1% and 5% (or more). We’re working directly with an exchange, so our fees are as low as they can possibly be, and we don’t charge any additional processing fees.
  • Big selection of coins and tokens – you can donate in over 30 cryptocurrencies.
  • Institutional experience – we’ve been accepting crypto donations since 2017.

Tax-deductible – if you live in a supported jurisdiction (US, UK, NL), your donation will be tax deductible.

How donate with crypto using Giving What We Can?


Fill out the request form
or contact us at tech@givingwhatwecan.org with your full contact information, amount, currency.

Please note that we can only accept donations equivalent of > $5,000 USD. For donations that don't meet this, we recommend converting them to fiat currency first and then donating through our donation portal.

After contacting us, we'll send you further payment instructions through email.