[Rejected] Venezuela’s Central Bank Contemplating on Holding Bitcoin

Venezuela has been facing substantial economic woes. Nevertheless, this nation has invented a way of dodging the effects of international sanctions by utilizing its own cryptocurrency known as Petro. 

It has been reported that Venezuela’s central bank is contemplating testing the probability of holding on to Bitcoin so that Petroleos de Venezuela SA, a state-controlled oil company, can be assisted. It is predicted that this firm owns troves of Ethereum and Bitcoin. 

Notably, moving these digital currencies to the central bank may be instrumental in paying suppliers, as well as steering clear of potential blocks from traditional channels, such as fiat currency. 

The central bank is also pondering on plans to have cryptocurrencies counted towards international reserves that have nosedived in recent years. 

On the other hand, various South American nations have been embracing cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies as they are deemed transformative. For instance, following Uruguay’s legalization of cannabis or marijuana in 2013, blockchain technology is set to boost the traceability of cannabis production. 

Expressly, Uruguay Can, one of the significant cannabis production companies in South America, and Aeternity, an open-source blockchain firm intended for decentralized applications, have partnered in developing a supply chain management platform based on the blockchain technology. Blockchain is, therefore, being favored because of its transparency, cost-efficient, and traceability aspects.