Airbnb receives $1.2M in donations to help Ukrainian refugees
At least 11,183 people signed up to offer their homes to Ukranian refugees
Within as little as 48 hours, Airbnb users collectively donated $1.2 million dollars to fund free stays for Ukraine refugees.
The money came from nearly 14,000 people across 72 countries who donated to the company's nonprofit affiliate, Airbnb.org, which facilitates temporary stays for people in moments of crisis, Airbnb told FOX Business.
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Last week, Airbnb pledged to house up to 100,000 refugees after Russia invaded Ukraine, forcing hundreds of thousands of women and children to flee.
Since then, the company has said that it has seen an "overwhelming response" of people visiting Airbnb.org. Through the nonprofit's website, people can either sign up to host a refugee or donate to help the company reach its goal.
By Friday, at least 11,183 people signed up to offer their homes to refugees, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky tweeted.
Numerous Airbnb users have also been booking stays in Ukraine in order to funnel money directly to hosts, though they have no plans of staying at the rental.
UKRAINE AIRBNB BOOKINGS: USERS PAYING FOR STAYS TO HELP HOSTS
Since the war erupted, Airbnb has temporarily waived all guest and host fees on all bookings in Ukraine. This means that Airbnb is not profiting from any stays in the country. Instead, all the money spent on bookings in the country will be passed on to the hosts.
More than 61,400 nights have already been booked in Ukraine, Chesky said on Twitter. That's driving about $1.9 million into the hands of Ukrainian hosts in need.