Venezuelans use bitcoin ‘mining’ to escape inflation

CARACAS: Inside a locked room in humming computers use their data- crunching power to mine bitcoins, an increasingly popular -

In warehouses, offices and computers to perform complex computations, essentially bookkeeping for digital transactions worldwide, for which they earn a commission in bitcoins.

While practiced worldwide, Bitcoin mining is part of a growing, to escape the worst effects of a crippling economic and political - cent this year.

bolivar and struggling to find are neither computer geeks nor financial wizards, are relying on the bitcoin— currently valued around $ 6,050, or other virtual currencies.

says her boss installed the 20 ma- chines in early 2015.

“These are machines that bring in $800 a month (more than 26 who refused to give her full name because of fears of arrest.

Bitcoin mining consultant Randy Brito estimates that about - ing,” although it is impossible to are protecting themselves by using servers in foreign countries.

Brito said the boom in these virtual transactions began in 2014, - lapse in the price of oil, which accounts for 96 percent of the country’s revenue.

“Whoever buys bitcoins with bolivars earns money by increasing the price of the bitcoin against the dollar, and escapes

Not without risk

- ing hotspot because the electricity needed to run the power-hungry computers is so heavily subsidized as to be almost free.

- duce’ bitcoins,” said economist Asdrubal Oliveros.

Tempted by the money made by plunge at home, buying a machine for $2,280 online from China.

“A friend took another and a boy I know bought 20,” said machines like crazy.”

They set the machines up in another woman’s house, as many miners do to spread the power consumption and avoid attracting the attention of the state intelli regularly raid buildings when they notice a suspicious surge.

“If they find machines, they arrest the owners or they try to electricity, we spend barely 15,000 bolivars a month (less than 50 cents at the black market rate).”

Lawyer Jesus Ollarves said that while bitcoin mining is legal in cryptocurrency laws, “those who practice it are often liable to arrest by the police for energy theft.”