Venezuela mandates airlines to pay for fuel in Petro

Nicolas Maduro, President of Venezuela, has mandated airlines flying from the nation’s capital to pay for the fuel in its national digital currency Petro. This step is taken by the state to encourage the adoption of the currency.

During his annual speech to the ruling Constituent Assembly, he said:

I decree the sale of all fuel sold by the PDVSA [Venezuelan state-owned oil company] for planes operating international routes be made in petros from now on.

He also announced that all the taxes and utility bills must be paid using Petro as Venezuela is headed towards a new economy, which has less bureaucracy and protocol. The President has been promoting Petro adoption since the nation’s fiat currency crashed and lost almost all its worth. However, this campaign did not succeed as Venezuelan citizens were hesitant to adopt Petro. They preferred decentralized currencies like Bitcoin instead. 

The recent mandated use of Petro might result in forced adoption of the currency. Maduro noted that a few businesses are concerned with the adoption because their company runs on dollars. Maduro warned that the state will be “watching” such business with a keen eye. Venezuela is under trade sanctions by the United States. This has probably necessitated the use of digital currencies like Petro and Bitcoin.