Bitrabo Editorial
Venezuelan opposition leader, María Corina Machado, made a significant announcement regarding the country’s plan to adopt Bitcoin (BTC) as a national reserve asset, drawing inspiration from former US President Donald Trump’s recent endorsement of a national BTC stockpile.
Bitcoin’s Potential in Alleviating Venezuela’s Economic Crisis
In a recent interview with Alex Gladstein, Chief Strategy Officer of the Human Rights Foundation, Machado discussed how Bitcoin could potentially help alleviate Venezuela’s economic collapse caused by financial mismanagement under former President Hugo Chávez and current President Nicolás Maduro.
Machado highlighted the devastating impact on the Venezuelan Bolívar, once stable at 3 to 4 units per US dollar, suffering massive devaluation, losing 14 zeros during the last two presidencies.
She also shared alarming statistics, citing inflation at an astonishing 1,700,000%, with basic goods prices doubling every two days and inflation surpassing 8,000,000% since 2016, leading to mass emigration due to instability in the country.
Machado described the situation as financial repression caused by excessive money printing despite Venezuela’s significant natural oil reserves.
Bitcoin’s Role in Rebuilding a Democratic Venezuela
Machado highlighted how many Venezuelans have turned to Bitcoin as a valuable tool to preserve wealth during hyperinflation, considering it a humanitarian lifeline and a crucial resistance tool against the economic crisis.
She envisions Bitcoin as an essential component in the reconstruction of a “new democratic Venezuela,” aiming to rebuild the nation’s wealth, support the impoverished, and uphold property rights through cryptocurrency adoption.
Moreover, Machado emphasized the immunity of Bitcoin donations to seizure in Venezuela, positioning the cryptocurrency as a pivotal element in her efforts for a peaceful transition in the country, advocating for leveraging Bitcoin technology for necessary changes.
Though not directly mirroring Trump’s recent stance, Machado’s proposal aligns with Trump’s idea of using a national Bitcoin stockpile to address the US national debt, currently at $35 trillion.
As of now, BTC, the largest cryptocurrency in the market, is trading at $56,590.
Image credit: DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com