Maduro Claims: Petro Will Be Used For International Exchange

If you’ve been following on our crypto news, you will know that Petro is an oil-backed cryptocurrency in Venezuela. President Maduro claims that this currency will be used as an official currency in the country.

Also, Petro will now be used for international transactions starting in a month according to Nicolas Maduro. He appeared on the national television in Venezuela and delivered his speech on the latest economic problems. He also announced:

“Petro comes into play as a currency for exchange, purchase and convertible currencies for the world.”

He was not specific about which areas exactly will be affected by the implementation of Petro nor did he number some of the countries that are ready to accept this currency as a payment. Currently, Petro does not trade on any major crypto exchange and it is not really backed with Venezuelan oil. The state-owned cryptocurrency is backed by the national oil company PDVSA which is in debt and making Petro the new national currency will hide the failure of the national currency, the bolivar.

Even though many oil importers were included in the drama around Petro, they still refuse to buy the oil from Venezuela using this cryptocurrency despite the many expanded uses. Maduro announced that this currency will be used as an accounting unit in the country thus the salaries will be tied to Petro as well.

However, the US administration still has no belief that this is a good idea. They put sanctions on the country and claim that the current situation will only bring hyperinflation and people will get very angry with the government.