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Vitalik Buterin Donates 256 ETH to Privacy-Focused Messengers Session and SimpleX

The move directs attention to permissionless account creation, with technical and policy hurdles still unresolved.

Overview

  • Ethereum’s co-founder confirmed gifts of 128 ETH each to Session and SimpleX, totaling about $765,000.
  • Transfers were routed through Railgun, a zero-knowledge privacy system, after Arkham flagged fresh Vitalik activity moving ETH into Railgun.
  • Buterin framed the support around two priorities: permissionless account creation and metadata privacy, urging users to try the apps.
  • SimpleX avoids global identifiers through one-way messaging queues, while Session relies on decentralized service nodes and onion routing without phone-number signups.
  • Buterin cautioned that both projects still need better multi-device support, stronger decentralization, and Sybil/DoS resistance, as broader privacy debates and market interest intensify.