A Venezuelan cryptocurrency exchange called CoinCoinX has temporarily ceased operations as a result of the country’s present legal environment. Users of the exchange have been assured that their money is secure and will be accessible for use as soon as regulatory permission has been received. The exchange attributed the decision to the high maintenance expenses of its platform, infrastructure, development, security, and personnel. There are allegations that the company has suffered as a result of a crackdown on Bitcoin mining, however. A large portion of CoinCoinX’s offerings were supported by its domestic mining activities.
Venezuela looks to be in the midst of the larger crypto crackdown, which is a result of an investigation into suspected government wrongdoing. A significant inquiry into the misappropriation of public money has focused on SUNACRIP, the state’s regulatory body for cryptocurrencies. Joselit Ramrez, its previous leader, has been sacked and imprisoned, and a number of top SUNACRIP officials have also been detained. The SUNACRIP offices no longer displayed the Petro emblem, the nation-owned cryptocurrency backed by oil that is used in Venezuela. The SUNACRIP sign has also been taken down, which might be a hint that the administration will take action to dissolve the regulator.
Additionally, as part of the anti-crypto mining campaign, miners from all throughout the nation have turned in their equipment to authorities. Venezuela has previously pushed to encourage the use of cryptocurrencies in commerce, and state-owned firms have been aggressively using cryptocurrencies as a method for payments in global trade. However, the USA has attempted to halt commerce via international economic sanctions as a result of a serious political disagreement with Washington. According to the authorities, SUNACRIP employees may have stolen up to $3 billion in cryptocurrency from state-owned businesses.
Thousands of consumers apparently can’t access their money as a result of CoinCoinX’s action. According to the news source Criptonoticias, the government-run PetroApp has also had “problems on the platform for almost a month,” with customers complaining that their monies are “frozen with no way to withdraw them.” The future of cryptocurrencies in Venezuela is still up in the air as a result of the ongoing crackdown on them.
