- Ex-Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, in collaboration with rapper Jay-Z, has announced the establishment of a blind Bitcoin (BTC) development trust with 500 BTC worth $23.7 million for teams working on the project in India and Africa.
- Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is collaborating with American rapper and businessman Shawn Corey Carter, better known as Jay-Z, to establish Trust, an endowment that will finance bitcoin development in India and Africa.
Dorsey announced the formation of the trust on February 12th, when he issued a first request for three board members to manage the blind trust.
The Twitter CEO’s remark came only hours after reports surfaced about India’s reported plans to outright outlaw the usage of cryptocurrency within its borders. According to a source who talked to Bloomberg, the world’s second-most populated nation may soon ban all crypto-assets, offering consumers a 3–6 month grace period to sell their holdings.
The board wants to keep Bitcoin development efforts and expand the ecosystem
On February 10, Jack Dorsey contributed $1 million to the nonprofit organization Coin Center in Washington, D.C., which simultaneously received a $2 million donation from asset management firm Grayscale. Dorsey’s continuous Bitcoin obsession recently saw him set up a Bitcoin full-node from his Macbook, suggesting that he now has a hand in confirming the Bitcoin blockchain.
The pair is investing 500 bitcoin, which is presently worth $23.6 million, into the trust endowment. The fund will be set up as a blind irrevocable trust, according to Dorsey, who also stated that the couple will not be directing the team.
₿trust is searching for three new board members. According to the job application, the fund’s objective is to “make bitcoin the internet’s money.”
So far, the Indian government has been slow to embrace bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The decision on Friday comes as New Delhi moves closer to passing laws that would prohibit the use of private cryptocurrencies in the country. It also intends to develop its own digital money.
Following Dorsey’s announcement, Indian crypto traders took to Twitter to nominate renowned cryptocurrency company founders — WazirX’s Nischal Shetty and Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao — as board members. Ratan Tata of Tata Group was even nominated by one of the founders of the cryptocurrency business.
“This is a great positive use example of how Bitcoin can assist India and the Indian software sector advance quicker,” WazirX’s Shetty told ET.