Between the months of May to June 2021, approximately $7400 USD in Dogecoin donations were lost to an alleged technical problem with the crypto exchange HitBTC.com. The exchange closed withdraws of Dogecoin resulting in the price manipulation from bots, reducing the value to practically nothing. Fortunately no additional funds have been lost and we continue to collect donations by private messaging.

We no longer deal with the HitBTC exchange as we now know that they have several problems and some of highest withdraw fees. We require the use of an exchange to accept crypto donations because of the many crypto options. As a Canadian organization, we have found adoption of crypto to be difficult. There is often high fees and many obstacles. Coinbase does not allow the sale of USDT and USDC fixed currencies. Binance has been banned in the United Kingdom and the province of Ontario. Huobi will no longer service Canadians as of December 31st. Although crypto has been our largest source of online donations, the experience has been stressful.

HitBTC has taken no responsibility and remains a poorly managed exchange with questionable business practices. For the meantime this incident will remain as a constant reminder of the risks of crypto and the need for regulators, and accountability. Acceptance of crypto will continue as long as accessible services remain available.