- Venezuela blocks access to Binance.
- Crypto users in Venezuela cannot access their savings or conduct P2P trading.
For the last weeks since the general election, Venezuela has experienced extended violence and riots. With the government’s attempts to control communication access to information, citizens have faced censorship.
In the latest move, the government has blocked access to the crypto exchange Binance.
Venezuela blocks Binance
According to the latest report from Venezuela, CANTV, the government-owned ISP, has blocked access to Binance.
CANTV, the firm that mostly controls much of the country’s broadband market, has left many citizens without access to Binance. This leaves users unable to access savings or market p2p transactions.
The move to block access to Binance is accompanied by the recent government’s move to crack down on growing anti-government movements.
Binance, through its official communication, acknowledged the state’s move, noting that,
“like other websites of companies from different segments in Venezuela, including social networks, Binance pages have been facing access restrictions. “
The crypto exchange further added,
“We want to assure you that your funds are SAFU under our robust security protocols. We understand the inconvenience and concern this situation may cause. We are monitoring the situation closely to address it in the best and quickest way possible.”
Notably, Binance is the country’s leading P2P exchange, and the move aims to compromise people’s ability to trade, thus impacting their financial ability.
Venezuela’s censorship amid anti-government riots
Since the election, Venezuela has turned to censorship to control people’s access to communication. The government has restricted various social networks, including Reddit, signal, Mercado Libre, and X.
In this crackdown, social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has faced massive restrictions, with the Venezuelan president accusing Elon Musk of spreading hate and misinformation.
President Nicolas Maduro shared on X stating that,
“X out for #10Días from Venezuela! Our country has a Constitution, Law, Institutions, and State. 10 days to present your documents. Let the plans on social networks to spread violence, hatred, and attack #Venezuela from abroad end.”
Therefore, the recent restriction on the crypto exchange is in the broader state’s policy to regulate the flow of information.
Impacts on the country’s crypto community
Since Binance is the country’s most popular crypto exchange platform, crypto users are hit hard. The move means that users cannot conduct any P2P transactions, thus affecting their access to fiat and their ability to earn through crypto.
Equally, many crypto users who have turned to crypto to store their savings because of poor economic performance will lack access. Therefore, the crypto community in Venezuela has experienced a massive hit.
What about Binance Coin?
Despite Binance restrictions, the Binance coin has reported a 14% surge in trading volume over the past 24 hours to $1.6 billion.
As of this writing, BNB is trading at $504.97 after recording a 19.42% surge on weekly charts. However, it has declined on daily charts by 5.17% with a reduced market cap.
Source: Tradingview
Essentially, the decline on daily charts is not an isolated case over Venezuela restriction but a wider market trend, with most altcoins declining on daily charts. As Michaël van de Poppe notes, the trend argues that,
“The #Altcoin market capitalization is down 60% from the ATH, while Bitcoin is only down 15%. Lots of upside for altcoins still to come.
Source: X
