The petro, or petromoneda, launched in February 2018, is a cryptocurrency developed by the government of Venezuela. As of August 2018 it does not appear to function as a currency.Announced in December 2017, it is supposed to be backed by the country's oil and mineral reserves, and is intended to supplement Venezuela's plummeting bolívar fuerte currency, as a means of circumventing U.S. sanctions and accessing international financing. On 20 August 2018 the bolívar soberano (Sovereign Bolivar) was introduced, with the government stating it would be linked to the petro coin value.
