Venezuela-based exchange Criptolago is rolling out a new service that allows crypto users to send Bitcoin (BTC) without having to be connected to the internet.
The service, which supports crypto transactions via text message, was launched on April 6th in response to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s call to action. Strapped by US sanctions, hyperinflation, a spiraling economy and political pressure, Maduro is looking for offline payment systems that can work with the petro, the controversial government-issued digital currency that his administration launched in February of 2018.
According to Criptolago,
“Following our president’s guidelines Nicolas Maduro and for our crypto nation with the new payments by SMS, we have opened the possibility for all the Venezuelan people to carry out transactions in Petro in a very practical way.”
Criptolago’s new SMS-based payment system supports all cryptocurrencies on the platform including the petro, BTC, Litecoin (LTC), Dash, and the token of the Venezuelan crypto bank Glufco.
The service also enables the transfer of bolivar, the national fiat currency, without an internet connection.
The exchange hopes the new service will be a boon for the country, where about 30% of the population does not have access to the internet.
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