AssangeDAO Concludes Raise with $53M to Free WikiLeaks Founder

This is the largest JuiceBox Ether raise in history, exceeding even that of ConstitutionDAO which raised funds in November to buy the original copy of the US Constitution.

AssangeDAO describes itself as a group of 'cypherpunks' that was launched on Dec. 10, in response to a court ruling in the UK that declared Assange extradition to the US, where he faces 175 years in prison.

The AssangeDAO intends to use the fund to bid on a one-of-a-kind NFT called 'Censored' produced by digital artist Pak in collaboration with Assange. The piece, called 'Clock 1/1,' is a muted clock that counts the days that Assange has spent behind bars.

Proceeds from the auction will benefit the Hamburg, Germany-based nonprofit Wau Holland Foundation for Assange's legal defense and additional awareness campaigns as he fights extradition to the US this month.

The concept was inspired by the FreeRossDAO, which raised $12 million to free Ross Ulbricht, founder of the dark web marketplace Silk Road.

Julian Assange is currently under espionage charges over WikiLeaks publishing classified government documents. For the last three years, he was held in London’s Belmarsh prison and was previously in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, protected by asylum status seven years ago.

Currently, he is in pre-trial detention in the UK, fighting extradition to the United States. If found guilty Assange could face up to 175 years in prison.