Nicolas Maduro announces Petro, government cryptocurrency backed by nature reserves

Gold, gas, diamond and oil will support the cryptocurrency, according to the Venezuelan Head of State.

The president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, today announced the creation of Petro, a Venezuelan cryptocurrency "to advance in the matter of monetary sovereignty, to make financial transactions and to overcome the financial blockade".

"Venezuela announces the creation of its cryptocurrency. The Petro will be called (...) this will allow us to move towards new forms of international financing for the economic and social development of the country, "Maduro said during his weekly television program, aired on the state-owned VTV channel, according to the EFE agency.

For its part, the Telesur channel stressed that the cryptocurrency will be backed by oil, gold, gas and diamond reserves. "This virtual exchange currency will offer greater security when managing all financial operations," said Telesur, adding that the Venezuelan president highlighted:

We are going to implement a new cryptocurrency system based on oil reserves, in order to advance in terms of monetary sovereignty. This will allow us to advance to new forms of international financing. "