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A crypto-currency exchange bought this year’s Eurovision crystal mic trophy from Kalush Orchestra, the Ukrainian rap-folk band that won the competition, to help it raise funds for their country’s fight against the Russian military.
Estonian crypto exchange WhiteBit, which is ranked 19 out of 624 on trust score by industry tracker CoinGecko, bought the trophy for $900,000 in an auction held on Instagram over the weekend. Oleh Psiuk, Kalush Orchestra’s lead singer, also sold his signature pink hat for 11 million hryvnia ($374,000). The money will be spent on drone systems, according to the band.
Kalush Orchestra won Eurovision amid a wave of viewer support across the continent for the song Stefania, which they dedicated to all Ukrainian mothers. They filmed a video for the song among ruined buildings destroyed during the Russian invasion.
Read more: Russian Wins in Eastern Ukraine Spark Debate Over Course of War
Ukraine’s military, after repelling an initial Kremlin-led blitzkrieg, is now facing a renewed Russian push to take territory in the east using a more focused offensive and superior firepower.
Russian troops now control almost all of the Luhansk region and are threatening to encircle thousands of Ukraine’s most experienced troops, leading the government in Kyiv to issue increasingly urgent calls for more military assistance.
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