Citadel Dispatch CD163: FEMI LONGE - HRF BITCOIN DEV FUND FIVE YEAR ANNIVERSARY
Jun 9, 2025
Femi Longe, Global Bitcoin Development Lead at the Human Rights Foundation, discusses Bitcoin's transformative power as freedom money. He highlights the HRF Bitcoin Development Fund's successes over five years, emphasizing community engagement and innovation in the Bitcoin ecosystem. The conversation covers Bitcoin's role in empowering activists against oppressive regimes and the urgent need for decentralized financial systems. Femi also explores the shift towards Bitcoin as a mainstream currency and its significance in African innovation and community building.
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Bitcoin as Lifeline for Activists
- Activists stand up to authoritarian regimes using Bitcoin as a lifeline for survival and truth.
- A Ugandan activist was abducted and tortured but still shared her story at the Oslo Freedom Forum.
Bitcoin's Foundational Purpose
- Bitcoin was created to enable peer-to-peer electronic cash transfers without intermediaries, not just as a fiat hedge.
- For many authoritarian regime activists, Bitcoin's value is in escaping financial surveillance and oppression.
HRF Fund Sparks Bitcoin Innovation
- HRF's Bitcoin Development Fund has given over $8.2M through 298 grants, kickstarting many key Bitcoin projects.
- Many prominent Bitcoin educators, designers, and developers began their journey with HRF funding.