Venezuela Rolls Out Ethereum-Based Stock Exchange to Help Skirt US Sanctions

Venezuela is reportedly paying companies in allied countries, including Iran and Turkey, with bitcoin to mitigate the effects of U.S. sanctions on its economy. The Venezuelan government is also planning to increase bitcoin usage now that it has a dedicated cryptocurrency mining center. Venezuela Uses Bitcoin to Pay for Imports Venezuela has been using bitcoin to pay for imports from allied countries, local news outlet Runrun.es reported this week. The government of President Nicolas Maduro is also planning to increase its usage of bitcoin in trade now that the Venezuelan Army is actively....

Venezuela has announced a 90-day trial for a decentralized stock exchange supporting “alternative digital assets” and fiat currencies. Venezuela’s National Securities Superintendency has given the go-ahead for a 90-day pilot of a crypto-powered “decentralized stock exchange” in the country that aims to have a global reach despite international sanctions. Cointelegraph Espanol reports that news of the Decentralized Stock Exchange of Venezuela’s authorization to operate was published in the country’s official gazette, issue 6,578, Sept. 29. The exchange is known as BDVE and its website....

Uphold, a New York-based cryptocurrency exchange, has announced it is closing its operations in Venezuelan markets. The company, which has already had problems with users in the country in the past — shutting down accounts and requiring KYC controls that some users deemed excessive — declares that the exit from Venezuela has to do with the “complexity of complying with U.S. sanctions.” Uphold Abandons Venezuelan Markets Uphold, a New York-headquartered cryptocurrency exchange and stock trading platform, has announced that it will no longer serve....

The platform advised users to withdraw funds quickly, noting it would halt trading for Venezuela-based clients on July 31, with all accounts “fully restricted” beginning Sept. 30. Crypto trading platform Uphold said it will be withdrawing support for users in Venezuela due to sanctions imposed by the United States government.In a Thursday announcement, Uphold said “owing to the increasing complexity of complying with U.S. sanctions” the platform would “very reluctantly” be moving out of Venezuela. The platform advised users to withdraw their funds as soon as possible, noting it would halt....

Venezuela president Nicolas Maduro says the country is to start using cryptocurrency in both domestic and global trade, as part of efforts to neutralize crippling U.S. economic sanctions. Speaking in the country’s parliament on Sept. 29, Maduro revealed that the move will “give new strength to the use of petro and other cryptocurrencies, national and global, in domestic and foreign trade…” The country has already been trying to use its national crypto, the petro, for this purpose but without much success. Maduro was delivering an anti-sanctions law aimed at....