Cryptocurrency donations to Ukraine top $52 million as Russian ruble falls

March 2 (UPI) -- Crypto donations to organizations in Ukraine, including the country's government, have topped more than $52 million as the price of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin rise.

The financial support comes as Ukraine fights off Russia's military invasion, which began Thursday.

The Ukrainian government raised approximately $35 million by Wednesday, while the remainder was raised by groups supporting its fight against Russia.

Ukraine has started accepting a greater number of cryptocurrencies, according to Forbes, which says the government has put $14 million of that amount to use.

The Ukrainian government made a public appeal Saturday for digital donations on Twitter, mentioning Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Digital wallets in Ukraine have accepted nearly 60,000 donations, which include various digital tokens such as Tron, according to Forbes.

Money has also been donated from the sale of a Non Fungible Token. The unique digital artwork depicted the Ukrainian flag. The NFT sale raised $6.5 million for the Ukrainian war effort, making it one of the most expensive sales of proprietary digital property.

Overall, the government has raised approximately $7 million from NFT sales.

The founder of Polkadot, an open-source blockchain platform and cryptocurrency that allows for distributed computing, Gavin Wood, made a $5.8 million donation.

"The people of Ukraine are grateful for the support and donations from the global crypto community as we protect our freedom. We are now accepting Polkadot donations too," the government wrote on Twitter.

Donations are going to both government and private digital wallets.

A decentralized autonomous organization was formed at the end of February to raise money for Ukrainian soldiers facing the Russian army.

This comes as the value of the Russian ruble declines, hitting record lows in recent days. At the same time, the value of the biggest cryptocurrencies has been rising since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into Ukraine.

Bitcoin traded as high as $44,188 Wednesday, and receded slightly to $44,166 Thursday afternoon. It fell as low as $36,370 in the final days of February.

Analysts suggest holders of the ruble are looking for ways to get their money out of the Russian currency.

"Under the current market conditions, I'm not surprised to see investors -- at least those in Russia -- seeking stablecoins," Bendik Schei, head of research at Arcane Research in Norway, told CBS MoneyWatch.

Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies backed by stable assets -- such as gold or U.S. currency -- to determine their value. Examples include Bitcoin and Ethereum.