Venezuelan army turns to bitcoin mining as economy collapses. The Venezuelan Army Engineering Brigade inaugurated the new Digital Assets Production Center of the Bolivarian Army of Venezuela.” on Instagram. As the video reveals, the centre houses various ASIC mining equipment used to crack proof-of-work algorithms.
General Lenin Herrera launched a new mining activity. The stated goal of the mining operation is the “strengthening and self-sustainability of our units of the Bolivarian Army,” adding later that these mining centres will generate “unblockable sources of income” and an alternative to the “trust system blocked and controlled by colonialist interests,” referring to the United States, a nation that has placed sanctions against many associates.
Venezuela has seen historic inflation in recent months with oil prices crashing and political turmoil taking its toll even before COVID-19
Nicolás Maduro proposed an “Anti-Blocks Law,” a legal body that proposes using cryptocurrencies to avoid sanctions and access financing from international allies.
These intentions are not new. The Maduro administration has gone so far as to introduce and promote its own cryptocurrency, called the Petro, which has had limited success.
On the other hand, the U.S. military is still closely tracking Venezuela’s crypto operations. Recently, Admiral Craig Stephen Faller referred to the use of crypto by Maduro and went so far as to relate its use to drug trafficking and terrorism, adding that the armed forces were keeping an eye on all such operations.
[image: Daniel Stub]
