Central Pacific Bank Foundation has accepted its first cryptocurrency donation.
The local bank’s nonprofit foundation arm says it will accept 39 different cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin and Ethereum. The foundation has partnered with Engiven Inc., a provider of cryptocurrency management software.
Keith Amemiya is the executive director of the CPB Foundation. In the past year, CPB Foundation has donated $1.6 million to help local communities. He says several organizations and individuals have made sizable donations to help those causes.
“So with that in mind and the increased interest of corporations and individuals to support the CPB Foundation, we thought it would be a great idea to expand our reach by allowing and accepting cryptocurrency donations from people who are interested," Amemiya said. "We've recognized the fact that cryptocurrency is becoming an increasingly popular way for people to make payments and so we wanted to again expand our reach and accept donations in whatever form that's acceptable.”
While its charitable foundation is accepting cryptocurrency, Central Pacific Bank is not.
Local banks may use a company in the state’s Digital Currency Innovation Lab to receive crypto donations, but the program ends on June 30, 2022.
The state's DCIL held a webinar earlier this year on nonprofits accepting cryptocurrency, and lists Hawaii Theatre Center as a nonprofit that accepts crypto.
