Myanmar’s shadow government adopts Tether as a fundraising currency.
The Republic of the Union of Myanmar, also known as Burma, is an Asian nation with borders shared with China and more than a hundred different ethnicities, making it a complex country.
The country has been struggling with political instability since declaring its independence from Great Britain in the middle of the last century. At present, there are in this territory two governments: the overthrown and the one in power.
Early this year, a coup led by the military force took place in the country, granting them absolute power in Myanmar and delegitimizing the democratically elected government of the leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Meanwhile, Min Aung Hlaing, the current chief of staff of the Myanmar Armed Forces, embraced the role of prime minister in an interim government. The military organization that took power has promised new presidential elections between this year and 2023.
As reported by Bloomberg, the National Unity Government (NUG) said through a Facebook post that it now accepts USDT. This parallel government of Myanmar, which got made up of supporters of the ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi, has recognized the stablecoin Tether (USDT) as its official currency for transactions and to accept financial support.
NUG Finance Minister Tin Tun Naing said that NUG will now accept the dollar-compatible stable coin, USDT, for domestic use to facilitate and accelerate current commerce, services, and payment systems.
The NUG does not have the official power to rule over the country; it is a kind of parallel government (something similar to the case of Juan Guaidó in Venezuela). However, the leader declared war on the Myanmar junta, a government led by military leaders.
That junta arose to power earlier this year after a military coup led by a group of militars. The shadow government group began raising funds with Tether to start a campaign to overthrow the military reign.
The group gathered at least USD 9.5 million in the first 24 hours of a sale of what got marketed as the Special Treasury Bonds of the Spring Revolution. To achieve this goal, the group received the support of the Myanmar diaspora worldwide, which intends to help overthrow the current government headed by coup leader Min Aung Hlaing. The bond appears to get structured as a direct loan instrument.
Sales got paused for at least a week until December 6. This pause happened because of high demand and other few details on how much money they gathered so far. The NUG also intends to appoint representatives in various countries to help with sales, according to Bloomberg.
In May 2020, Myanmar’s central bank said that all digital currencies were illegal in the country. Therefore, the adoption of Tether by NUG appears to be an act of defiance and would not be a legal movement for the government in office. On the other hand, the stablecoin Tether has long been into a controversy over the opacity of the dollar reserves that back it up.
By: Jenson Rivas
