When Bitcoin debuted in 2009, numerous investors rejected the cryptocurrency as a marginal idea or even fraudulent. (Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s former deputy at , famously called it “.”) Yet the asset’s value has surged dramatically in recent years, and President Donald Trump branded the currency “digital gold” after to create a strategic bitcoin reserve last January. Now, reports claim Venezuela has invested in that “digital gold,” maintaining a “shadow reserve” nearly double America’s.
An online outlet reported on Saturday that Venezuela may possess approximately $60 billion in Bitcoin. Further intelligence suggests that deposed Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his allies accumulated Bitcoin through three avenues: a 2018 gold exchange supervised by Venezuelan Interior Minister Alex Saab, oil proceeds denominated in Bitcoin, and confiscation of cryptocurrency mining hardware from domestic miners.
Years of sanctions have isolated the nation from financial markets, and analysts contend this may have driven Venezuelan officials to acquire cryptocurrencies to circumvent the restrictions.
estimates Venezuela’s stash at 240 bitcoin, valued at almost $22 million. The site derived these figures from a 2022 Forbes piece that referenced analysis by a blockchain data company. This amount falls dramatically short of America’s estimated 328,372 bitcoin, presently worth $30 billion, though the assertion would place Venezuela’s holdings at nearly twice the U.S. total and among the world’s largest bitcoin holders.
Questions are being raised
The allegations regarding Venezuela’s covert Bitcoin stockpile have naturally attracted doubters, among them Mauricio di Bartolomeo, co-founder of digital asset finance firm Ledn, who was raised in Venezuela and whose relatives have mined cryptocurrency there since 2014.
Di Bartolomeo dismisses all three purported sources of bitcoin revenue as implausible: the gold exchange, oil transactions, or mining gear confiscations. “Nothing in the public record supports this,” di Bartolomeo told . “The level of corruption, graft, and vanished funds is so high that I doubt any substantial sum could have been amassed.”
He detailed his complete case in a opinion article titled “.” He does mention that authorities confiscated his family’s cryptocurrency mining equipment in 2018, returning it five years later in degraded condition, indicating extensive utilization of the gear.
Di Bartolomeo notes that stablecoins have gained traction in Venezuela during severe inflation. Numerous Venezuelans use stablecoins for family remittances because the digital currency offers more favorable exchange rate margins than physical cash.
Potential implications
Tracking the Venezuelan government’s cryptocurrency holdings is nearly impossible, due to the asset’s decentralized and secretive nature. Nevertheless, if verified, these allegations could potentially transform worldwide Bitcoin markets.
Although the majority of U.S. government cryptocurrency holdings were obtained via law enforcement confiscations, cryptocurrency’s emergence as a state-managed asset gained mainstream attention last year when President Trump issued an executive order establishing a national Bitcoin reserve to strengthen America’s digital asset standing, without taxpayer expense.
With the U.S. now effectively controlling Venezuela, following Trump’s vague declarations that America “will run” the nation, the fate of any existing Bitcoin reserves remains uncertain. Whether genuine or fabricated, the allegation illustrates the cryptocurrency’s increasing geopolitical importance and the Trump administration’s readiness to pursue its interests in the digital asset sector.
[This article has been revised to fix the spelling of Mauricio di Bartolomeo.]