Leap of Faith: Auction to Benefit Children’s Cancer Attracts Major Crypto Artists

A prominent crypto industry innovator is channeling his personal journey and using his platform for a meaningful mission: raising funds for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital through crypto donations and NFT sales.

Anonymous Influencer Leap's upcoming initiative will launch Friday afternoon at Art Basel Miami with an art auction, bringing together the blockchain and art worlds to support life-saving research. It's the culmination of months of personal and professional transformation fueled by his commitment to making the crypto space a force for good.

In an exclusive interview with Decrypt, Leap shared that he finds himself a more reluctant participant in a space often driven by speculation and quick profit, and that he seeks a deeper sense of purpose. Not content to jump in on how the Web3 space is going.

“People were raising millions of dollars for questionable projects, and it just felt so shallow,” he recalled.

But that was until a personal tragedy called the way.

Earlier this year, his father was diagnosed with stage-4 prostate cancer. The diagnosis pushed Leap into a period of reflection.

“When you have that kind of pain, it forces you to rethink everything,” he shared. I don't blame anyone, but remembering the turmoil in my family is a good thing because it lights a fire under my ass and makes me push harder and push my team harder.

On his birthday, March 19, Lepp decided to turn his frustration into action. He posted a wallet address for a crypto donation to donate to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

“I thought maybe I paid $10,000, $20,000,” he said. However, Lepp was surprised when the community contributed more than $100,000 within 24 hours. He donated every cent.

The overwhelming response from the crypto community was eye-opening. “That's when I realized the potential of this place to drive real impact,” he said.

After the donation, St. Jude's Web3 department invited him to visit the campus in Memphis. That trip strengthened his resolve. In the Flags of the World room at the Danny Thomas Research Center, surrounded by banners representing the hospital's global mission, Lipp said he was moved to tears.

“It felt like divine intervention,” he recalled. “I finally found a purpose that is shallow but can really shape cryptocurrency.”

He took a two-month hiatus from social media to create, plan and build a team to help execute his vision. In the past nine months, Leap says he has put together a team of developers, designers and lawyers and invested more than $200,000 of his own money.

“I'm putting my money where my mouth is,” he explained. “I don't want to be another failed startup that burns through investor money. This had to be real, and it had to work.

His company, which has yet to go public, aims to bring art, technology and philanthropy together in an effort to bring transparency, efficiency and innovation to charitable giving.

To kick off the initiative with a bang, they organized a live auction on Friday, featuring works by renowned digital artists, which is expected to fetch six images from the highly-anticipated one-on-one episode.

“Art is at the heart of crypto,” Leap said. “It's what makes the place human – it connects us in a way that goes beyond profit.”

The Art Basel auction, held online through NFT marketplace Magic Eden, features one-on-one auctions of works by over 30 leading digital artists.

Notable contributors and donors to the auction include the sustainable NFT projects Azuki and Doodles, as well as Eric “Snofro” Calderon, founder of ArtBlocks and “Chromie Squiggle” creator, Patrick Amadon, Jimena Buena Vida, Vinny Hager, Efdot, Groot (the artist behind the meme). Coin Fwog) and others.

“Art is the soul of crypto,” Leap said. “Everything in this place – from NFTs to memorabilia – begins and ends with art. Supporting artists is the foundation of this industry.

For Leap, this initiative is about more than fundraising; It's a statement about crypto's potential to bring about meaningful change.

“Crypto is great at fundraising, especially after big wins,” he said. But we need to modernize and decentralize charity work to build trust and transparency.

As Leap prepares for the bid, he remains optimistic. “This place has a lot of potential to do well,” he said. “We have to use it in the right way.”

Originating at Art Basel, Leap's journey is set to transform personal suffering into purposeful innovation – both in crypto and beyond.

“This place has a lot of potential to do well,” he said. “We have to use it in the right way.”

Edited by Andrew Hayward.