Tagged: nicolas maduro

January 5, 2026 @ 8:57 am By Omar Faridi  |  

  As of January 4, 2026, Bitcoin has climbed to around $91,400, marking its strongest performance since mid-December. After a brief dip below $90,000 triggered by breaking news of US military operations in Venezuela, the flagship cryptocurrency quickly recovered, demonstrating notable stability in the face… Read More

January 4, 2026 @ 5:41 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Venezuelan dictator, Nicolas Maduro, was ousted from his leadership role in a precision military and law enforcement action by the United States that rocked the world this weekend. While it was in the planning stages for many months, and Maduoro was given many opportunities to depart… Read More

November 22, 2020 @ 11:48 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Global Fintech firm Circle has teamed up with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and Airtm in order to provide aid to Venezuelan residents using the USDC stablecoin. According to a release, the initiative has been introduced with government support and notably marks “a global first”… Read More

April 12, 2020 @ 4:20 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Venezuela-based digital currency exchange Criptolago has confirmed that it will introduce a text message-based payment platform that can handle transactions in Venezuela’s controversial (allegedly) oil-backed Petro (PTR) cryptocurrency and other major digital assets. The new payment system could potentially help Venezuela’s residents with transacting in … Read More

January 6, 2020 @ 10:53 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Nicolás Maduro, president of Venezuela, a country suffering from record levels of hyperinflation and rampant corruption, says that the South American nation will be selling oil and part of its gold it produces for Petro, the highly controversial national digital currency. In statements shared with… Read More

May 9, 2019 @ 10:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has issued an updated advisory to warn financial institutions of continued widespread public corruption in Venezuela. This is part of an ongoing effort to isolate the Maduro regime who recently lost a popular election but has refused to leave… Read More

March 13, 2019 @ 8:06 pm By Cali Haan  |  

As part of its ongoing measures against the “illegitimate regime” of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned Evrofinance Mosnarbank, “a Moscow-based bank that is jointly owned by Russian and Venezuelan state-owned companies.” According… Read More

January 27, 2019 @ 12:47 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Sources to Bloomberg have claimed that The Bank of England (BOE) is refusing to release $1.2 billion USD of Venezuela’s gold to the country’s officials. A delegation led by Calixto Ortega, president of Venezuela’s central bank,  reportedly visited London in December seeking access to the… Read More

January 16, 2019 @ 11:03 am By Cali Haan  |  

Nicolas Maduro, President of Venezuela, has announced a ten-fold increase to the value of the country’s new national cryptocurrency, el petro, to 36 ooo sovereign bolivars (not to be confused with standard bolivars) and has also raised the minimum wage in the country by 18 000… Read More

October 10, 2018 @ 3:11 pm By Cali Haan  |  

In the midst of a migratory crisis seeing more than 5000 people leaving Venezuela per day, Venezuelan vice-president Delcy Rodriguez announced that, effective immediately, passports in Venezuela must be paid for using the government’s controversial new cryptocurrency, El Petro, at a cost-equivalence of four month’s wages,… Read More

October 7, 2018 @ 10:41 am By Cali Haan  |  

“Bienvenido, Petro!” And with those words, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced at a press conference Monday that the public sale of his country’s purportedly oil-backed cryptocurrency, El Petro, will commence November 5th. Maduro told reporters and applauding supporters while brandishing a cellphone: “If you have… Read More

September 4, 2018 @ 2:16 am By Cali Haan  |  

Amendments to the constitution, an international roadshow, determined rhetoric and state orders to banks that they must denominate transactions in Venezuela’s new state cryptocurrency, El Petro- all have done little to make El Petro viable, reporters at Reuters claim. For four months, Reuters writers travelled through hyperinflation-beleaguered… Read More

August 29, 2018 @ 12:32 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The Venezuelan state’s push to legitimate its new El Petro cryptocurrency now involves an order to the region’s banks that they must adopt El Petro as a unit of account. According to France 24, a resolution from the Venezuelan Sudeban banking regulator now requires, “Public and… Read More

August 24, 2018 @ 2:24 pm By JD Alois  |  

According to a survey from Ripio, users in Latin America overwhelmingly believe blockchain will take over the financial system within the next decade. Ripio is a peer to peer credit network that operates on blockchain. The Ripio wallet has over 200,000 users and is one of… Read More

August 14, 2018 @ 10:10 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Reuters is reporting that the Government of Venezuela is seeking to amend the 1999 version of the country’s constitution so it can set up a special central bank to manage the country’s new national cryptocurrency, El Petro. According to a loose translation, National Constitutional Assembly Member… Read More

July 31, 2018 @ 9:59 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The rial traded at historic lows this weekend in Iranian black markets as financial problems made worse by US sanctions continue to take a toll on the country. According to the Arab Times, Iran’s national currency traded at 116 000-to one US dollar Saturday before… Read More

May 31, 2018 @ 11:15 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Earlier this month we reported that Venezuela tired to increase demand for its new and controversial state cryptocurrency, El Petro, by offering India a 30% discount on oil purchased with the currency. Venezuelan officials reportedly travelled to several potentially sympathetic countries earlier this year trying… Read More

May 5, 2018 @ 9:34 am By Cali Haan  |  

The Iranian minister responsible for information and communications technology, Mohammad Javad Azari-Jahromi, has announced that a cryptocurrency it developed with the ministry’s Post Bank is “ready,” Reuters reports. Iranian State news agency IRNA has reported that the state’s cryptocurrency will be exempted from a ban… Read More

February 1, 2018 @ 9:42 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Venezuela has issued a White Paper on its proposed cryptocurrency Petro (PTR). Petro has its origin in former President Hugo Chavez’s controversial idea of a strong currency backed by raw materials, in this case, petroleum; Venezuela is recognized as having the largest oil reserves in the… Read More

January 23, 2018 @ 10:36 pm By JD Alois  |  

Several days ago, Senator Marco Rubio and Senator Robert Menendez published a letter directed to the US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin demanding to know what the US government was doing to foil attempts by rogue nations in leveraging cryptocurrencies to skirt imposed sanctions…. Read More