2025-11-02
The irony of Venezuela's crypto conversion is that @NicolasMaduro, a former Maoist & bus driver, quietly did in months what techno-autocrat @nayibbukele couldn't achieve after years of imposing and proselytizing bitcoin in El Salvador. Necessity is the mother of invention.
New York Times
How the Venezuelan government is using crypto and stablecoins like USDT to manage the downturn; Venezuela sells most of its oil to China and is paid in crypto
President Nicolás Maduro's opponents hope a new period of economic pain will finally topple his government.
Maduro has learned from Trump's previous pressure campaign against him. His economic team is better prepared. The economy is creaking, but so far, not collapsing. The big test will be Maduro's ability to avoid another round of hyperinflation next year. https://www.nytimes.com/...
New York Times
How the Venezuelan government is using crypto and stablecoins like USDT to manage the downturn; Venezuela sells most of its oil to China and is paid in crypto
President Nicolás Maduro's opponents hope a new period of economic pain will finally topple his government.
In a matter of months, Maduro has managed to rewire Venezuela's economy to stablecoins, turning it into arguably the first nation to manage a large share of its public finances in crypto.
New York Times
How the Venezuelan government is using crypto and stablecoins like USDT to manage the downturn; Venezuela sells most of its oil to China and is paid in crypto
President Nicolás Maduro's opponents hope a new period of economic pain will finally topple his government.
Another irony is that @realDonaldTrump's crypto deregulation weakens the main economic weapon he has to make countries do what he wants them to do: sanctions. The money of pariah states no longer flows through banks. The current sanctions regime is nearing the end of the road.
New York Times
How the Venezuelan government is using crypto and stablecoins like USDT to manage the downturn; Venezuela sells most of its oil to China and is paid in crypto
President Nicolás Maduro's opponents hope a new period of economic pain will finally topple his government.
2022-09-05
The sophisticated deception tactic was first spotted in Venezuela, on tankers trying to hide their trade of sanctioned oil. “What seemed to be a localized practice at first has soon spread to nearly all known maritime regions.” https://www.nytimes.com/...
New York Times
US officials say large ships are increasingly manipulating their GPS-based automatic identification systems, or AIS, to evade international laws and sanctions
I started reporting this story last year to learn more about how Venezuela was adapting to sanctions, a relatively narrow topic. What I realized months later was just how crucial, and how fragile, the system of satellite data that shapes our world is. https://www.nytimes.com/...
New York Times
US officials say large ships are increasingly manipulating their GPS-based automatic identification systems, or AIS, to evade international laws and sanctions
2022-09-04
The sophisticated deception tactic was first spotted in Venezuela, on tankers trying to hide their trade of sanctioned oil. “What seemed to be a localized practice at first has soon spread to nearly all known maritime regions.” https://www.nytimes.com/...
New York Times
US officials say sanctioned countries are increasingly manipulating the GPS-based automatic identification systems, or AIS, of ships to evade international law
A technology enabling the transmission of fake locations to carry out murky or even illegal business operations … Tweets: @aliabunimah , @indianexpress , @amidaniel1 , @steve_e , @...
I started reporting this story last year to learn more about how Venezuela was adapting to sanctions, a relatively narrow topic. What I realized months later was just how crucial, and how fragile, the system of satellite data that shapes our world is. https://www.nytimes.com/...
New York Times
US officials say sanctioned countries are increasingly manipulating the GPS-based automatic identification systems, or AIS, of ships to evade international law
A technology enabling the transmission of fake locations to carry out murky or even illegal business operations … Tweets: @aliabunimah , @indianexpress , @amidaniel1 , @steve_e , @...
2021-10-08
This fascinating story echoes concerns over El Salvador's Bitcoin experiment. What's backing all the bitcoin claims in the state Chivo Wallet? The 700 bitcoin @nayibbukele claims to have bought don't add up & the government refuses to say where the bitcoin is or what it's worth. https://twitter.com/...
Bloomberg
A deep dive on Tether, which issued 48B coins this year, as regulators struggle to understand its cash reserves, organizational structure, and other details
something money-market funds avoid.” By @ZekeFaux https://www.bloomberg.com/... Daniel Viola / @dannyviola : Great investigation into the likely Ponzi scheme that is Tether: http...
2021-02-25
“Unlike globe-trotting Russian elites with their 300-foot yachts, leather-swathed private jets, and sumptuous 11-bathroom palaces, Bakalchuk flies economy, didn't own a car until 2019, and lives in a rented house outside Moscow.” She is worth $11bn. https://www.bloomberg.com/...
Bloomberg