Moo Dengs zoo enclosure getting an upgrade thanks to a secretive crypto billionaires big donation

Is it hipp-tocurrency?Moo Deng, the baby hippo who captivated the world this year, now has a billionaire benefactor.Canadian cryptocurrency mogul Vitalik Buterin donated more than $290,000 to her zoo in Thailand so he could be her “adoptive father,” Viral Press reported.“I very much look forward to seeing Moo Deng live long and prosper,” Buterin, who co-founded Ethereum, declared in a letter to the director of the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi province, where the 5-month-old pygmy hippo resides.Buterin made the generous 10,000,000 baht (around $293,000) contribution, facilitated through the zoo’s Wildlife Sponsorship Program, following a visit to Moo Deng’s paddock last month.

He was inspired to do so after being impressed by Khao Kheow’s commitment to animal welfare, education and outreach, the Straits Times reported.The mondo chunk of moula will go toward improving Moo Deng’s enclosure, among other upgrades.“I was particularly excited to hear your plans for improvements to the zoo itself, especially the proposal for upgrades to the Pygmy Hippopotamus habitat,” Buterin wrote in the letter.

“I am delighted to accept your invitation to be Moo Deng’s adoptive father while she grows up and to donate to the Zoo in her name.”Khao Kheow Open Zoo was moved by the crypto kingpin’s kind gesture.“We look forward to working with you over the next two years for the benefit of the Khao Kheow Open Zoo community and all our visitors!” zoo reps wrote in a statement on Facebook.Buterin also billed the contribution as a thank-you gesture to Thailand, which has hosted a series of events organized by the Ethereum community across the past few months, culminating in the hugely successful Devcon Sea conference for blockchain buffs in November.“What better way to do that (say thank you) than through a Christmas present to someone who is dear to all Thai people, Moo Deng, and who has become one of the most unexpected and important Thai celebrities on t...