Petrotoken Pre-sale Launched by Venezuela: The Venezuelan government has finally launched the resale of its cryptocurrency. The petro token has been highly controversial. Also, it is the 1st cryptocurrency which is being launched by a country.
The idea was 1st formulated by the Pres of the country in December 2017. It was aimed at providing alternative sources of funding to the cash-starved country. The country is already in an economic crisis due to the plunging oil prices.
Pre-sale details:
In the Pre-sale 82.4 million tokens are available. Previously, according to the president around 100 million tokens were to be issued which were to be valued at $ 6 billion.
In a recent announcement, the president clearly stated that Petrotoken is for the benefit of this country. He further added that many large blockchain-based companies, as well as start-ups, are supporting the cryptocurrency.
Controversies:
Petrotoken might be good news for the country but it is highly controversial. Ever since the 1st announcement, it has attracted a lot of controversies. According to the opposition of the country, it is nothing more than a scam. Also, the opposition further stated that launching such a cryptocurrency will be like pledging the oil reserves of the country for borrowing money.
Moreover, some of the opposition members even stated that it can lead to large-scale corruption. On the other hand, it is one of the very few ways in which the country will be able to get foreign funds as the US sanctions do not allow it and to tap into any traditional source of foreign funds.
The ICO market is fast becoming an alternative for the IPO market and for borrowing market. Up until now, only the companies were using the ICO market but now, a country has also tapped into it in order to raise funds.
With Venezuela being the 1st country to access the ICO market to raise money, it remains to be seen whether other countries can follow suit. Also, the progress of this particular ICO will be keenly watched all over the world. It is a pioneer in the field of countries using the ICO market to raise funds. This is the reason why many of the countries will be following the progress of this cryptocurrency. Also, investor interest will be keenly watched as well. If the investor interest is on the higher side, other countries might think about raising money with the help of cryptocurrencies. On the other hand, most of the investors will look into the kind of returns which the cryptocurrency can provide.
Adam Webb is editor in Smartereum, blockchain and currency news, where he produces updates on Blockchain, Ethereum and other alternative cryptocurrencies.
