Crypto News, April 28: Ronin Vows to Beef Up Security, and Zcash Co-Founder Reveals Himself

Finland has announced that it's donating 1,890 BTC to Ukraine — worth $75 million at current market rates. The crypto stash follows multiple seizures by law enforcement officials investigating drug-related crimes. Two Finland-based virtual asset service providers have been chosen to serve as brokers to ensure Ukraine receives the funds. They'll be tasked with selling off the Bitcoin so it can be transferred. Finland's Finance Minister, Annika Saarikko, described the decision as "right, important and good." She added: "It is the currency confiscated from the wrongdoers, which is now getting the wings of goodness."

The Ronin Network is vowing to beef up security after it fell victim to the biggest crypto hack on record. Ether and USDC worth $625 million were stolen in the audacious hack targeting the blockchain, which powers the popular play-to-earn game Axie Infinity. Developers say the network will be secured by 21 validator nodes within three months — with a longer-term goal of having more than 100. Bug bounties of up to $1 million are also going to be offered in an attempt to incentivize white hat hackers to detect security vulnerabilities before they are exploited by malicious actors. Gamers have been warned that the Ronin bridge might not reopen until late May.

The Russian Ministry of Finance has forwarded an amended version of its cryptocurrency bill to the country’s parliament. After review by Russia's internal secret service and its federal tax service, questions remain over the extent of regulation of mining and crypto exchanges. The bill is expected to be passed in May by the State Duma.

Edward Snowden has revealed he's one of the co-founders of Zcash. The identities of five people who created the well-known privacy coin have been known for some time. But the real name of the sixth — who was only known by the pseudonym "John Dobbertin" — has remained a mystery. Snowden is best known for his time as a whistleblower at the National Security Agency, where he released thousands of documents that revealed how the U.S. was spying on its own citizens. He's taken part in a new documentary documenting the history of Zcash — and gave fellow co-founder Zooko Wilcox permission to disclose his involvement "as long as it is clear that I was never paid and had no stake."