The host of CNBC’s Crypto Trader says an unnamed country is taking a close look at backing its currency with Bitcoin.
Ran NeuNer says he signed a non-disclosure agreement and can’t reveal which country is exploring BTC. He thinks the proposal is a long shot, but calls it an important sign of things to come.
Meanwhile, the Cuban government reportedly plans to look into whether or not cryptocurrency could alleviate the country’s economic woes.
President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Cuban government officials announced a slew of new economic measures designed to lift the country out of its current economic crisis. Researching crypto is one of them. Says Economy Minister Alejandro Gil Fernandez, according to Reuters,
“We are studying the potential use of cryptocurrency … in our national and international commercial transactions, and we are working on that together with academics.”
Cuba’s struggling economy, dampened by tightening US sanctions, the downturn in aid from Venezuela and reduced exports, has officials examining all kinds of options for basic provisions.
According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, Guillermo García, a 91-year-old former comrade of Cuba’s late dictator Fidel Castro, announced government plans to breed ostriches to help feed the masses and also praised the meat of the hutia, a giant rodent that is rampant on the island, as better than beef.
Cuba is not the only country that has explored a state-backed cryptocurrency to try to evade sanctions. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro launched the Petro in February 2018 as an official digital alternative to the bolivar, though it appears the supposed oil pegged cryptocurrency, derided as scam, never got off the ground.
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