Skip to Content
Blockchain

The US has banned transactions that use Venezuela’s crypto token

March 20, 2018

Even Donald Trump is talking about crypto now—well, if you call the petro a cryptocurrency.

Backstory: Last month, Venezuela issued its own crypto token, called the petro. It’s supposed to be pegged to the price of the nation’s oil, but some critics suggested that it was just a ploy to get around US-imposed economic sanctions.

The news: Donald Trump has now signed an executive order calling “all transactions related to” it illegal.

Why it's happened: The US administration warned investors back in January that Americans using the petro would risk violating sanctions, since it “would appear to be an extension of credit to the Venezuelan government.” Since then, several members of Congress had piled pressure on the administration to go further and limit the currency’s use.

Nice try, Venezuela: Jerry Brito, executive director of Coin Center, a policy think tank in Washington, DC, that advocates for blockchain companies, told CoinDesk that there’s “nothing new” in this executive order: “Issuing a cryptocurrency is not going to help Venezuela escape sanctions.”

 

Keep Reading

Most Popular

Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.

And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.

The problem with plug-in hybrids? Their drivers.

Plug-in hybrids are often sold as a transition to EVs, but new data from Europe shows we’re still underestimating the emissions they produce.

How scientists traced a mysterious covid case back to six toilets

When wastewater surveillance turns into a hunt for a single infected individual, the ethics get tricky.

Google DeepMind’s new generative model makes Super Mario–like games from scratch

Genie learns how to control games by watching hours and hours of video. It could help train next-gen robots too.

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review

Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.

Thank you for submitting your email!

Explore more newsletters

It looks like something went wrong.

We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at customer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive.