This post was most recently updated on January 31st, 2019

Venezuela had a spike in Bitcoin trading volume hitting a new record last week. All this happened during the week Maduro announced Petro, the new country cryptocurrency backed by petrol.

According to data form, Localbitcoins exchange Venezuelans converted more than 1073 Bitcoins which is around 7 million dollars in only 7 days. This is the highest record in volume since 2013.

Also in September Bitcoin volume hit 900 BTC in three weeks. All these interests in cryptocurrency come to Venezuela because the country was hit by an 80,000% inflation rate which made the local currency practically worthless, and stores became empty letting people starving.

People keep on swinging to digital currencies in Venezuela to evade the government expanding stranglehold on the economy and huge hyperinflation which may hit 1 million % by the end of the year.

Petro, the nation’s highly questionable cryptocurrency, is set to launch in November as Maduro declared on October 2.

Crypto Press Release

Petro Struggling To Convince, It Is Seen By Skepticism

On 5 October, VP Delcy Rodriguez uncovered the subsequent stage towards dependence on Petro, expressing all new passport applications and extensions must be paid using Petro Coin.

To get a new passport Venezuelans have to pay 4 times their wage. So practically they have to pay 2 Petro, which right now costs 7200 bolivars or 115 USD, around four times the national lowest wage permitted by law, Bloomberg reported. Passport validity extension will cost 1 Petro.

Venezuela immigration statistics show high numbers amid the economic crisis that. At least 5000 Venezuelans leave the country every day despite the efforts for the migration police force to control the migration.

Petro’s profile issues keep on plaguing the task at the global level and among normal local nationals critical of the Maduro administration.

In August, Wired reported Petro cryptocurrency as a more dangerous than the hyperinflated Reichsmark in Germany amid the Weimar Republic.

Attached to oil holds, the report likewise noted state oil organization PDVSA’s is in debt by 45 billion dollars — around 10 times the Petro’s supposed $5.9 billion market capitalization.

” To put it bluntly: it’s a scam on top of another scam ” Concluded Wired.

It is worth to note that countries with hyperinflation are inclined more to toward cryptocurrencies because of their failed monetary systems that produce crises. Like Venezuela, other countries with hyperinflation rate are also Turkey, Iran, Argentina, and Zimbabwe. All these countries show an increasing interest in Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

Images from Shutterstock and LocalBitcoins