Venezuela’s Crypto Fortunes Go South Amid Mining Ban 

A crypto mining ban is turning the tables on Venezuela’s significant strides in this sector.

According to Bloomberg, the progress made by Venezuela in the crypto sector is dwindling thanks to a temporary halt in cryptocurrency mining activities.

President Nicolás Maduro oversaw a vibrant crypto industry as he spearheaded the use of digital assets, especially a sovereign coin called Petro that the government provided.

Petro was deemed an ideal alternative to the national currency, the Venezuelan bolivar, as US sanctions and hyperinflation continued to bite.

Nevertheless, the country is facing a crypto mining ban, which is crippling the industry. This ban was triggered by a huge corruption syndicate linked to crypto wallets allegedly utilized when redirecting payments from Petróleos de Venezuela SA, an oil company run by the nation.

The oil scandal has seen nearly eighty people arrested, including Hugbel Roa, who served as the technology minister.

As Venezuela enters the third month amid the crypto mining ban, nearly 75,000 mining apparatus have ceased operations, as acknowledged by mining groups.

Alexis Lugo, the leader of the educational cryptocurrency program Criptoneros, pointed out, “It is unfortunate that after going through so much trouble to formalize and do things right, we are now in this situation.”

Juan Blanco, BitData CEO, echoed these sentiments and stated that the innocent were feeling the pinch thanks to the misdeeds of a few.

The about-turn made by the Venezuelan administration regarding crypto friendliness has jeopardized the nation’s quest of being a mining haven.

The rain started beating the crypto sector on Venezuelan soil after the government slapped transactions with a new tax back in February this year. This was a calculated move to revamp the nation’s currency, The Crypto Basic previously reported.