WikiLeaks Accepts Bitcoin
WikiLeaks begins accepting Bitcoin donations to circumvent the banking blockade, fulfilling Satoshi's prophecy about the 'hornet's nest.'
On June 14, 2011, WikiLeaks announced via Twitter that it was opening a Bitcoin donation channel. This move was a direct response to the 'Banking Blockade' imposed by Visa, MasterCard, PayPal, and Bank of America, who had cut off all services to the whistleblower organization following the release of US diplomatic cables (the Afghan War Logs) in 2010. With traditional financial rails severed, WikiLeaks turned to Bitcoin as a censorship-resistant lifeline, becoming one of the first high-profile organizations to utilize the currency for survival.
This adoption was controversial within the Bitcoin community. Months earlier, in December 2010, Satoshi Nakamoto had famously posted a warning when the idea was first proposed: 'No, don't bring it on. The project needs to grow gradually so the software can be strengthened along the way. I make this appeal to WikiLeaks not to try to use Bitcoin... the heat would bring us down'. Satoshi feared that associating the fragile beta network with a geopolitical pariah would invite a crushing government crackdown. WikiLeaks respected the request initially but activated the option six months later as their financial situation became dire.
WikiLeaks' adoption was the first high-profile demonstration of Bitcoin's core value proposition: permissionless value transfer. It proved that Bitcoin could function where the banking system refused to. Over the years, WikiLeaks raised thousands of Bitcoin, which appreciated massively, effectively funding their operations for a decade. This event cemented the bond between the cypherpunk/activist community and cryptocurrency, demonstrating that Bitcoin was, in fact, 'unseizable' money.
Key Sources: WikiLeaks: Original Tweet | The Block: WikiLeaks & Bitcoin History