Venezuela Extends Crypto Agency Reorganization Amid Scandal

Venezuela was one of the first countries in Latin America to establish its crypto supervision agency with the launch of Superintendencia Nacional de Criptoactivos (Sunacrip) in 2018.

The government now estimates that it will take an additional six months to “reorganize” the entity, which it dissolved in March 2023. According to a presidential decree issued on September 19, President Nicolás Maduro extended Sunacrip’s compelled reorganization period.

The new extension period officially began on September 17 and will end on March 24, 2024. In March 2023, the government announced the reorganization of Sunacrip as a result of a corruption scandal involving the company’s erstwhile top management.

At the time, at least ten individuals were arrested, including Joselit Ramirez Camacho, who commanded the crypto department from its inception in 2018 until his arrest.

According to Venezuelan prosecutors, during his tenure at Sunacrip, Ramirez misappropriated more than $3 million from the state.

He oversaw the country’s crypto regulation and the launch of Petro, the Venezuelan national cryptocurrency connected to the country’s oil reserves.

The shutdown of the regulatory body caused chaos in the Venezuelan crypto industry, which is closely linked to the government and has used digital assets to circumvent U.S. economic sanctions.

Several states have shut down crypto mining facilities, and some exchanges have been ordered to cease operations.

The Venezuelan government established Sunacrip in 2018 to oversee all crypto-related commercial activities in the country, as well as the “creation, emission, transfer, commercialization, and exchange” of crypto assets.

In 2018, the country introduced petro, a cryptocurrency backed by oil. In the summer of 2023, rumors circulated that the government intended to liquidate the currency however, at the time of writing, its official website was still operational.