Colombian-based cross-border remittance start-up Valiu has launched Bitcoin-backed synthetic U.S. dollars equally a means for Venezuelans to access stable assets and featherbed the hyperinflation plaguing their national economy.

Information technology'southward still in Alpha, merely Valiu has partnered with Latin America food delivery app Rappi, which could offering a large user base to help with adoption when it's rolled out in full after this year.

Synthetic USD

On Apr 23, Valiu chief executive Simon Chamorro tweeted that the firm's 'cryptodollar' has launched in alpha:

"After four months of 80+ hour work weeks, 500k+ lines of make clean code written across four engineers, shifting the company fully remote due to COVID, and completing a rigorous regulatory analysis … I'grand proud to say that Valiu's cryptodollar is now live and running in Alpha."

Valiu's synthetic dollars are stored in a smartphone wallet app, and tin be sent among Venezuelan users without fees. The synthetic dollars are backed past Bitcoin, however, users without cryptocurrency knowledge tin simply buy and transfer cryptodollars by depositing cash at one of Valiu's thousands of remittance partners in Republic of colombia.

Sid Ramesh, an advisor to early-stage startups, posted a video detailing the app'south operation, with Chomarro sending him one cryptodollar from his smartphone in less than 30 seconds.

'Cryptodollars' as a solution to hyperinflation

Valiu CEO has described a recent influx of migrant workers from Venezuela coming into Colombia equally the inspiration for the cryptodollar project, as many had been using a risky black market for remittances that developed as a issue of Western Wedlock and MoneyGram becoming increasingly discipline to capital controls.

Valiu has been providing fiat currency-based remittances to Venezuelans for 7 months but hyperinflation meant recipients ended upwards with less bolivars during the time it took to go far.

"99% of remittances still arrive in bolivars," Valiu's head of research Alejandro Machado tweeted earlier this month. "Dollars cash inappreciably make it beyond borders, especially in the eye of #COVIDー19 lockdowns."

While Venezuelans are experiencing hyperinflation, some experts now believe the U.Southward and Commonwealth of australia are headed for deflation due to the lockdown induced slump in need.