The independent medical research foundation NYSCF has started accepting “philanthropic gifts in Bitcoin”, which  is the “world’s preeminent digital currency”, according to the foundation.

The announcement appeared on the Foundation's official website, stating that the move will allow NYSCF “to extend its reach as an independent entity free from government restrictions by further removing fiscal constraints hindering global stem cell research”.

The gifts in the bitcoin digital currency will be processed by BitPay.

“Working with BitPay allows NYSCF to extend our flexibility to our supporters,” the NYSCF CEO Susan L. Solomon explained.

As stated on the Foundation's official page, NYSCF is a non-profit organisation with the mission to accelerate the discovery of cures for the major diseases of our time through stem cell research.

BitPay business development director Rory Desmond expressed a hope that the partnership will allow NYSCF to extend its mission globally. “We’re excited to see how it will use this technology to make donations more affordable, more secure, and more accessible for international supporters,” Rory Desmond added.

The New York Stem Cell Foundation was founded in 2005 as a private foundation aimed at exploring the better ways of curing diseases through stem cell research.

Apart from doing the actual research, the Foundation provides post-doctoral programmes, organises conferences and awards the Robertson Prize to the scientists under the age of 40 who have made the most significant achievement of the year in stem cell research.

Maria Rudina