Venezuela is the country on the northern coast of South America with diverse natural attractions.
Known for its petroleum industry, the environmental diversity of its territory, and its natural features, the country has been battling severe hyperinflation.
And here, the country is reported to be leveraging cryptocurrencies as part of its effort to bypass U.S. sanctions.
According to an investigation by Spanish newspaper ABC, President Nicolás Maduro and his administration are using a digital wallet app called Jetman Pay to turn tax revenue from domestic airports into Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies that were then transferred to exchanges in Hong Kong, Hungary, Russia and China.
There, the funds were converted to U.S. dollars and then sent back to Venezuela, according to the report.
At the moment of investigation, ABC noted that Jetman Pay is only being used by Maiquetia International Airport (IAIM) located near Caracas, the country’s capital, where the taxes were collected through an automated system.
The automated system was said that have been used at IAIM since February 2018.
The effort shows how Maduro’s government want to use cryptocurrencies to avoid using U.S. bank accounts, and from participating in the open international market where it was forced to use cryptocurrencies to obtain dollars.
Maduro’s administration is also said to be planning to use the system to also collect taxes from other airports, as well as from refueling airplanes.
Earlier, the President has ordered every branch of the Banco de Venezuela to allow citizens buy and trade el Petro, the state-issued cryptocurrency. With this strategy, he is hoping to provide a much-needed workaround economic sanctions.
The cryptocurrency el Petro was first introduced in 2018, after Maduro said on a state-run television channel that it would be used in international transactions.
Although cryptocurrency can provide a solution for Venezuela, at least for a short term. But its use of the cryptocurrency has failed to catch on.
