Crypto News update:
Venezuela has been grappling with an overwhelming financial crisis in recent years, with its traditional currency experiencing severe devaluation. This economic instability has driven citizens to increasingly rely on the U.S. dollar and cryptocurrencies. Binance, one of the major cryptocurrency exchanges, has recorded significant crypto transactions in the region.
Post-Election Tensions and Restrictions on Binance
Following the recent presidential election, where Nicolás Maduro secured a controversial victory with 51% of the vote, political tension has escalated in Venezuela. His opponent, Edmundo González Urrutia, received 41% of the vote, and his supporters allege election fraud, causing further unrest. In response, the Venezuelan government has imposed restrictions on Binance’s operations in the country.
Government Crackdown and Human Rights Concerns
Reports indicate that the Maduro administration is cracking down on those challenging the election results. The government has detained 2,200 protesters, including four journalists, and the death toll from the unrest has risen to 24 as of August 7, 2024. The detained journalists are being denied access to legal counsel. Additionally, the government has banned the services of X, a social media platform owned by Elon Musk.
Investigation and Bans on Financial Activities
Venezuelan authorities are actively investigating opposition leaders Edmundo González Urrutia and María Corina Machado, who have called for re-elections. The government has also imposed a ban on almost all financial activities, including cryptocurrency transactions, following restrictions on internet services. Venezuela is noted for being among the top nations in cryptocurrency adoption, with exchanges like Kraken, Uphold, Coinbase, KuCoin, Bybit, and Binance being the most popular in the region.
Global Crypto Market Developments
Binance has announced plans to convert delisted tokens from its ecosystem into USDC, including Monero (XMR), Multichain (MULTI), Bitcoin Gold (BTG), BitShare (BTS), and Groestlcoin (GRS). Additionally, U.S. exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have seen significant inflows, with nine Ether spot ETFs listed in the region, collectively receiving $104.8 million since August 2, 2024.
Crypto Market Price Trends
In the last 24 hours, the global crypto market capitalization has dropped by 4.08% to $2.06 trillion. Despite the decline, trading volume surged by 61.35%. Bitcoin’s (BTC) trading price fell by 4.10% intraday but rose by 11.04% weekly, currently trading at $58,748 with a significant increase in daily trading volume. Ethereum (ETH) is trading at $2,569, having lost 4.01% of its value in the past 24 hours. The Sui (SUI) token has surged over 70% in the past week, partly due to Grayscale’s launch of the SUI investment trust. Bittensor (TAO) has also seen a 49.52% price increase following the launch of the Bittensor investment trust.
