The Venezuelan government is urging its countrymen abroad to send money back to the nation via the Petro, the country’s state-run cryptocurrency.
The head of the government agency that oversees the Petro has stated that this is to protect the money from hyperinflation, the Miami New Times reported.
However, not everyone was convinced. Speaking with the publication, José Colina, president of Miami’s Veppex (an acronym for Politically Persecuted Venezuelans in Exile, in Spanish), said, “We know that this is simply an attempt to take advantage of remittances. We know that this is a tool to dodge sanctions. It goes without saying that the claim that this is the safest way to avoid depreciation of income is absurd.”
The news comes after president Nicolás Maduro has done everything has pushed the adoption of the cryptocurrency since it was first launched in February 2018. For instance, the government has tried to tether it to the country’s hyperinflation-ravaged national currency and has offered it for free to people participating in the country’s work programmes.
The Petro was originally supposed to be backed by the country’s national resources and intended to supplement the nation’s free-falling currency.
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