Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Venezuela’s ‘Surprise’ New Cryptocurrency May Be Used for Foreign Trade, Association Says

Venezuela’s ‘Surprise’ New Cryptocurrency May Be Used for Foreign Trade, Association Says

Venezuela already has a cryptocurrency, the Petro, which it launched in 2018, but its current status as a viable alternative currency is unknown.

President Nicolas Maduro has promised Venezuelans “a surprise” new cryptocurrency known as the digital bolivar, saying he would make an important announcement on the currency soon.

“We have a surprise: the digital bolivar. We will provide more details about it later,” the president said in a national television address Wednesday.


Maduro said the Venezuela had achieved a digitization rate of 77 percent for payments in 2020 in the form of using debit cards to make payments, and reiterated a pledge made last month to achieve a rate of 100 percent by the end of the year, completely squeezing out cash payments in both paper bolivars and foreign currencies.

No other details about the digital bolivar were given, but Jose Angel Alvarez, president of Venezuela’s National Cryptocurrency Association, believes the new cryptocurrency could complement the petro, telling decrypt.co that one to be used for domestic transactions and the other for foreign trade.

Ray Falconi, another association member, told the outlet that the new currency could be used to continue dollarizing the economy as part of the state’s recent initiative to stabilize the fiscal situation and get inflation under control. “It could be possible to convert the digital dollars handled by the banks and pay with our digital coin with any bank,” he explained.

“That’s why the government is conducting a first step of opening dollar accounts: to be able to capture cash and digital currency and convert it to a token backed with those dollars,” Falconi suggested.


Last month, Caracas lifted currency exchange controls, allowing citizens to establish debit accounts in dollars (with transactions processed in bolivars), and raising the official exchange rate to coincide with that found on the black market.

“We have created a resistance economy. This is why I have authorized the opening of accounts in convertible currencies,” Maduro said in his Wednesday remarks.

Fernando Medina, chief technical officer at Vlockchain, a Caracas-based blockchain consultancy, believes the digital bolivar could become a full-fledged central bank currency that enjoys the status of legal tender, which the Petro presently does not.

A brainchild of President Maduro’s, the petro is said to be pegged to a basket of goods including oil, gas, gold and diamonds, and was originally conceived as a blockchain-based means to circumvent US sanctions. To encourage its use, the currency was handed out in small quantities to citizens and allowed to be used to pay taxes and make other payments. Caracas also hoped to use the petro to facilitate foreign trade, including oil trade with other countries.

However, there has been little news on the petro since its launch, with the US preemptively banning its use in 2018 and calling it a “scam.” Foreign traders don’t seem to be sure of its current status.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Hungary's Prime Minister Criticizes NATO's Role in Ukraine
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Hungarian Scientist to Conduct 30 Research Experiments on the International Space Station
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
International Astronaut Team Launched to Space Station
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
Oil Prices Set to Surge After US Strikes Iran
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
×