Elliptic, an analytical company, found that Gaza Now received $21K in cryptocurrency donations in the form of a few weeks after the attack.
According to a new report from TRM Labs, cryptocurrency donations make up a small part of the overall terrorist financing picture, with most donations being less than $500.
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the UK’s Office for the Implementation of Foreign Sanctions have also imposed sanctions on the founder of Gaza Now, Mustafa Ayash.
The sanctions against Gaza Now and its founder are the latest in a string of similar sanctions against other financial intermediaries that support Hamas.
Brian Nelson, Undersecretary of the Treasury for Counterterrorism and Financial Intelligence, said the Treasury remains committed to reducing Hamas’ ability to finance its terrorist activities, including through online fundraising campaigns for the group.
According to TRM’s report on the illegal crypto economy for 2023, the maximum donations related to terrorism last year were less than $500 and $100. Only 3% of cryptocurrency donations exceeded $5K.
Tether (USDT) on the TRON blockchain was most often used to finance terrorism due to low gas tariffs, minimal price fluctuations and the difficulty of tracking transactions.