Venezuelans Increasingly Opting for Bitcoin over Bolivar
The weakening bolivar and strict capital controls have forced Venezuelans to use bitcoin in their everyday life. Bitcoin has already been recognized as the best performing currency of 2016. The digital currency’s price has been exhibiting a positive trend over the year. The decentralized nature of Bitcoin makes it immune to conventional market forces, which in turn makes it the best alternative currency in the world. This very feature of Bitcoin is now coming handy to countless Venezuelans who are currently going through the worst economic phase in the country’s history. The problem....
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Venezuela’s national currency Bolivar Fuerte is rapidly losing value amidst hyperinflation. The official FX value of the Venezuelan bolivar is $1 to 9.95 VEF but in actuality, in the country’s black market, local residents are paying around 5,000 VEF for $1. To avoid the devaluation of bolivar and acquire necessary daily goods, Venezuelans have started to rely on Bitcoin to finance their expenditures. By local exchange rates, 100 bolivar is equivalent to $0.02. The country’s highest denomination banknote was 100 bolivar, but the government demonetized it earlier this week. As a result, the....
Venezuela has announced the sudden withdrawal of its highest-value banknote, replacing it with coins ahead of a sudden major currency restructure. President to Mafia: ‘Stay Outside With Your Scam’. The country’s bolivar fuerte, introduced in 2008 and since almost crushed under inflation, currently comes in denominations of up to 100 units. The 100 bolivar note, worth around $0.02 USD on the black market, will be removed Wednesday, as Venezuelans have just 10 days to hand them in at banks. New denominations will arrive later on, first a 500 bolivar note, followed by notes worth up to 20,000....
The Central Bank Of Venezuela applied the announced redenomination plan for the national fiat currency, the bolivar on October 1. This redenomination implied slashing six zeroes from the currency, to make payments and currency handling easier, according to earlier statements. However, just hours after applying this measure, the bolivar lost more than 20% of its value against the U.S. dollar.
Venezuela Slashes Six Zeroes From Its Currency
The Central Bank of Venezuela, the institution that dictates the monetary policy of the country, has applied a redenomination of its fiat....
Reuters reports that Venezuelans looking to bypass dysfunctional economic controls are turning to the Bitcoin virtual currency to obtain dollars, make Internet purchases - and launch a little subversion. Acquiring US dollars in Venezuela means either requesting it from the state, which struggles to satisfy demand, or tapping a shadowy black market. Even small dollar transactions are out of the question for most Venezuelans. That has created a gray market for Bitcoin, a digital currency which is not governed by a central bank or controlled by a single source. In Venezuela, using Bitcoin can....
This plan by the Venezuelan government is a bold one, that will ultimately not entirely work as intended. The financial situation in Venezuela continues to go from bad to worse. Just last week, the government announced a new 20,000 bolivar bill to reduce the existing bank note supply. A new law will replace the current highest-denomination banknotes with coins in the following 72 hours. A similar strategy has been employed in India, which has not worked out at all. Replacing existing banknotes with coins seems like taking four steps backward. For the Venezuelan government, the decision....