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Kyiv-Mohyla Academy becomes the first in Ukraine to award NFT certificates in the metaverse

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Published on Friday, 04 July 2025 12:45

Graduates of the “Blockchain Technologies” academic program by the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy and WhiteBIT received NFT certificates issued on the Whitechain blockchain — marking the first time in Ukraine that a student graduation took place in the metaverse.

This collaboration between fintech, academia, and AI opens up new formats of learning — it is precisely through such synergies that true innovations are born. One clear example of this trend is the master’s certificate program for IT faculty students, launched back in 2023 by WhiteBIT and Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.

In 2025, the program completed its second cohort of students. Over the course of several months, participants studied cryptography, DeFi, smart contract development, and technical tools for crypto market regulation.

“The synergy between Mohylianka’s academic approach and WhiteBIT’s practical experience is truly impressive. Without the hands-on experience, blockchain would have remained just a complex concept for me,” — shares Oleksandr, a graduate of the program.

The graduation ceremony took place in a virtual space by Lezo on the Spatial platform — a Ukrainian metaverse — where students met their instructors and received NFT-format tokenized certificates. These are unique digital assets recorded on the Whitechain blockchain. Such diplomas cannot be forged or transferred, and their authenticity can be verified directly through the blockchain.

This case demonstrates how Web3 solutions can be effectively integrated into real sectors — in particular, into education.

“This program is not just about education. It's a real example of how blockchain solutions are transforming traditional institutions. And we're not stopping here,” — said Volodymyr Nosov, founder and President of WhiteBIT Group.

The idea of integrating academic learning with fintech is also welcomed within the Academy itself:

“This certificate program is important for us because blockchain is a complex and innovative field. It’s a significant and challenging area where there’s still room for research and the creation of new products. And WhiteBIT knows how to build quality solutions and develop the skills students need to grow their careers,” — comments Andrii Hlybovets, Dean of the Faculty of Informatics at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.

The “Blockchain Technologies” program has become a vivid example of innovative cooperation between a university and a fintech company. And this graduation stands as proof of how Ukraine is pioneering new educational formats at the intersection of traditional higher education, blockchain, and the metaverse.