I hope you are having a great Friday. Thanks again for reading Barracuda.
In case you missed it, here are the latest briefs to keep you up-to-date:
El Salvador’s Bitcoin law has done more for president Nayib Bukele than it has for Salvadorans, investors | 15 September
Venezuela’s Central Bank chief Calixto Ortega wants Russian tech in the country’s banking system | 7 September
In Argentina, pro-Bitcoin president Javier Milei is being sued for promoting a ponzi scheme involving crypto | 31 August
From Latin America this past week, here are the most important updates on Bitcoin, blockchain and crypto politics coursing through the news right now:
Mexico’s anti-money laundering unit is focused on a high profile public sector corruption case involving. That has ex-president Vicente Fox flustered. He says AMLO should be more focused on combating organized crime.
Mexico and Brazil are flagged as potential transhipment points for avoiding Russia and Belarus import-export controls. Mexico and Brazil crypto exchanges could be vulnerable to increased flows of illicit funds. That could bring heightened scrutiny from the US Commerce Department.
Nayib Bukele wants to run again for a consecutive presidential term in El Salvador. That is prohibited by the constitution, meaning a constitutional reform of some kind will be needed if Bukele wants to maintain any legitimacy at all. Bukele’s Bitcoin ambassador Max Keiser is supporting Bukele’s intention to run again.
Bukele’s intention to seek a second term will likely increase tensions with US congress, where a bipartisan bill to limit El Salvador’s crypto experiment was floated earlier this year. Wall St. downgraded El Salvador’s sovereign debt the same day.
Ecuador’s hydro assets could become a subject of increased tensions between the US and China. At a meeting of Latin America defense ministry heads hosted by SOUTHCOM, General Richardson cited environmental damage caused by Chinese hydro. There are Ecuador firms that want to mine Bitcoin using hydro electricity.
Colombian congress member Julian López is resurrecting Mauricio Toro’s bill for regulating the country’s crypto industry. The legislator says that a working group in congress will work closely with the Petro government.
Venezuelan cyber criminal behind Thanos ransomware has gone underground, according to this ArmandoINFO profile. Moises Zagala licensed his software in exchange for fees made to Zagala in bitcoin.
Controversy surrounding Argentina’s pro-Bitcoin presidential candidate Javier Milei has died down somewhat. The inflation-fighting opponent to incumbent Alberto Fernandez is attracting dissenters from other parties to join his crusade.
Brazilian Andrés Vellozo claims he has the Central Bank chief Roberto Campos’ backing on a digital data banking tool called DrumWave. Vellozo has been building his firm in Silicon Valley for seven years.
Brazil’s securities regulator CVM is pressing for a change to the current legislation that would regulate cryptocurrencies. There are some senators in Brazil’s congress who want to scrap the bill and start over. A forthcoming presidential election will likely delay the bill because of potential liabilities in what is increasingly becoming a close race.
Brazil, Argentina, Colombia and Ecuador were the countries with the highest rates of crypto adoption in Latin America last year. A report issued by Chainalysis shows how emerging markets are the main centers of crypto adoption.