Malta’s finance minister backed a government-run charity’s decision to reject a multimillion-dollar crypto donation from Binance Charity, saying the refusal was the right call despite the funds’ ballooning value, according to the Times of Malta.
Finance Minister Clyde Caruana reportedly said Tuesday he supported the Malta Community Chest Fund’s decision to decline a 30,644 BNB (BNB) donation, worth about $200,000 in 2018 but now valued at roughly $33 million.
“You either give to charity or you don’t,” he told the Times of Malta. “Don’t dance around it.”
His comments followed reports that the Malta Community Chest Fund had walked away from Binance Charity’s donation due to reputational concerns about the source of the funds. Binance, on the other hand, refuses to complete the donation unless it is handed over the patient information necessary to ensure direct fund handover.
Malta’s President Spiteri Debono called Binance’s contribution a “bogus donation” in comments to the Times of Malta earlier this month. Speaking outside the San Ġwann Primary School in mid-October, she questioned whether Binance Charity is acting in good faith and said that the company does “not have a good name.”
Commenting on hypothetically accepting the donation, Debono said, “It would also be unfair on other donors who are in good faith, who abide by the laws.”
Spiteri Debono (right). Source: Wikimedia
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Donation dispute dates back to 2018
Binance and its users donated BNB to the Maltese charity, the Malta Community Chest Fund, for terminally ill cancer patients in 2018. Since 2021, Binance has reportedly been waiting for the charity to verify patient information, including their medical bills and crypto wallet address. Binance views direct transfer to patients as non-negotiable.
Malta Community Chest Fund refused to share the information that Binance requires. Binance said in a 2021 announcement that it was discussing potential solutions with the charity, but no solution has since been found:
“Regrettably, when donation plans were submitted to BCF on 24th November 2020, the plans did not include the end-beneficiaries’ crypto-wallet addresses that were necessary to enable BCF to transfer donations in accordance with the terms.”
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Not everyone agrees
The dispute has divided Malta’s political establishment. In mid-October, Prime Minister Robert Abela urged the Malta Community Chest Fund to reconsider its decision to reject the BNB donation. During a news conference, he expressed concern that the charity was overly strict and that the funds could be put to better use.
“It upsets me that a sum like that…. could possibly be lost,” Abela said. “If there is a chance to save the situation, I appeal for mutual agreement.”
The issue appears to have become part of partisan politics in the country. Other Maltese members of parliament, including Edward Zammit Lewis and Rosianne Cutajar, reportedly expressed opinions similar to those of Abela, as did opposition party leader Alex Borg.
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