Freedom. Democracy. Equality. That’s the promise of bitcoin. Blockchain technology was built to decentralize governments and the power of financial institutions, so why is it so appealing to authoritarian rulers?
Quartz reporter Preeti Varathan looks at how President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro is creating its own crypto (the Petro) to maintain Venezuela’s grip on power. Meanwhile, Venezuelans are mining bitcoins in an attempt to circumvent intense inflation.
And Maduro is not the only leader or government with their eye on a crypto workaround.
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