Venezuela's Petro Coin Now on Sale to Residents

The Venezuelan government announced via Twitter on Monday that its controversial Petro cryptocurrency is now on sale to residents of the country via the official government portal.

Enterate || El Petro podrá ser adquirido por personas jurídicas y naturales desde su portal web https://t.

Vicepresidencia de Economía October 29, 2018.An infographic included with the message shows that Petro can now be bought at six government-approved exchanges as well as the government portal.

Six Exchanges AuthorizedThe Venezuelan government authorized six crypto exchanges to trade the coin earlier in October, shortly after it first announced the coin and started trading it only for hard currencies before the sale opened to the public.

At the beginning of October when Petro was officially announced, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said November 5 would be the official date of availability.

Petro Facing ProblemsThere appear to be other inconsistencies with Petro.

The coin's official Twitter account was taken down as of this writing, and the wallet made for storing Petro has been blocked.

At first, it was claimed that Petro would be available for purchase with Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Dash, but as of now, the coin is available for BTC, ETH, and a variety of fiat currencies, including the Venezuelan bolivar.

Venezuela's bid to use the Petro as its national currency has already drawn criticism from the international community, with U.S. officials calling it a "Scam" and the White House barring American businesses from accepting the cryptocurrency.

Venezuela's native currency has also suffered devaluation through rampant inflation, and the price of even a few Petro coins adds up to several months of work for most Venezuelan citizens.