Some users fear the stampede of digital assets services in the nation will keep affecting the crypto space. Some Venezuelans agree with the benefits of peer-to-peer bitcoin trade and payments.
The trading bitcoin exchange and other digital assets Uphold revealed the closure of its financial activities in Venezuela and thus joined the group of entities leaving this region due to the punishments imposed on the country by the United States of America.
Uphold is not the first entity to part ways with the Venezuelan territory; it certainly won’t be the last. A report revealed in 2020 by Venezuelan economist Luis Oliveros highlighted the impact that US financial sanctions have on the economy and other sectors of the region.
The Document Revealed that US Sanctions Harm the Most Vulnerable citizens in Venezuela
For the citizens, this implies a decline in financial services as risk aversion increases from banks and other entities active in Venezuela or with Venezuelan institutions, which get forced to follow the US punishments.
That is what Venezuelans are lamenting on Twitter now, when they must withdraw, before July 31, their bitcoins or other cryptocurrencies that they have in Uphold. Uphold will no longer receive deposits from Venezuelan residents and suspend all accounts with a zero balance.
One Less Option for Users of Bitcoin and other Digital Assets in Venezuela
Following Uphold’s news, many users went to Twitter to express their concern about the situation.
Among the tweets, it can get read that this situation has been the worst news to start the day, and it is unfortunate because many freelancers used it to save money. Those are thoughts that come to the public from the sudden dismissal of Venezuela from the service of trading bitcoin and other digital currencies.
There are many regrets about the decision of Uphold to shut down operations; however, there is a stronger focus on the constant departure of the country’s crypto networks.
In 2019, the Bittrex cryptocurrency exchange was the one that suspended its services to Venezuelan citizens, even though it did not highlight the reasons that guided the entity to make that fatal move.
Later, in September of last year, Cryptobuyer Pro, the exchange founded by the Cryptobuyer entity, also stopped its activities in Venezuela. And the same thing happened with the peer-to-peer bitcoin (BTC) exchange Paxful, which left behind its activities in the country in 2020.
Sanctions and More Sanctions
Among the concerns of Venezuelans for Uphold’s abandonment, the sanctions of the United States of America are the ones that affect ordinary citizens more. The affected say, through Twitter, that the worst thing is that the righteous are paying more than the sinners. Meanwhile, some say it is necessary to re-consider the punishments that the United States of America imposes on Venezuela due to the problems with the administration.
By: Jenson Nuñez
