Trump, Maduro, and... Bitcoin!

[Mate2237]

At this point every thing is just rumors and should not be taken too seriously until confirmed by the right authorities. But Venezuela has one of the largest oil deposits in the world which they are using to run the country and so I personally doubt if they can use such huge sums of money for the purpose of investment in Bitcoin and holding it underground. Even if this is true it could be that Maduro is the one that has used the country wealth to do that for his personal use and ownership.



Even if this seizure happens I don't see much impact that it will have, Bitcoin will still be on circulation but I don't think that the United States of America will just seize the Bitcoin I understand that , there is a law in the United State which empower the government to take cryptocurrency that has been seized.

[DrBeer]

I highly doubt this is true
Venezuela is a poor country and could be considered developing
I don't really see any reason they would be holding such amount of Bitcoin as reserve
...

But did the Venezuelan people appropriate the country's resources and sell them through shady schemes, pocketing the profits for themselves? No, it was dictator Maduro who did that. Based on this, the money earned through criminal means should be returned to the people of Venezuela, as the people of the country are the only legitimate owners of their resources.

[red4slash]

But in this case, will this foreclosure which is rumored to be around $60 billion make sense in the end. From the beginning the US went after Maduro but when Venezuelan reserves were targeted as confiscation for me it was too far stretched because Venezuelan reserves are not necessarily Maduro's property so when it comes to confiscation then it is clear that Maduro's assets including crypto (if he has it) are confiscated.

It's just that games like this are too commonplace and even if we don't explain it clearly, we will definitely know what it means, especially since the US has also done this not only once to several other countries that have been victims before.

[DrBeer]

But in this case, will this foreclosure which is rumored to be around $60 billion make sense in the end. From the beginning the US went after Maduro but when Venezuelan reserves were targeted as confiscation for me it was too far stretched because Venezuelan reserves are not necessarily Maduro's property so when it comes to confiscation then it is clear that Maduro's assets including crypto (if he has it) are confiscated.

It's just that games like this are too commonplace and even if we don't explain it clearly, we will definitely know what it means, especially since the US has also done this not only once to several other countries that have been victims before.

No, no, no, you don't understand! These are not Venezuela's assets, but Maduro's PERSONAL assets. Which, moreover, were obtained by criminal means, through the illegal sale of oil. And oil, let me remind you once again,  is precisely the asset of Venezuela and its people, which Maduro sold without the knowledge of the people, and the people got nothing from it, while all the income, through all kinds of “schemes,” went into Maduro's own pocket.
 

[WillyAp]

I think that the United States has no right to confiscate these bitcoins for itself.

Life is not fair and no state has any rights. But reality is if you have the power you just ignore that.
Russia entered Afghanistan? For what reason?

[philipma1957]

I think that the United States has no right to confiscate these bitcoins for itself.

Life is not fair and no state has any rights. But reality is if you have the power you just ignore that.
Russia entered Afghanistan? For what reason?

Might makes right.

is the justification or basically wtf are you going to do about it.

sad very very sad

[WillyAp]

Might makes right.

is the justification or basically wtf are you going to do about it.

sad very very sad

It is not my opinion, just stating what is reality.
Don't shoot the messenger 

[EFS]

If this is true, USA has once again committed theft as it always does. Trump is openly showing that he fears no one by seizing Venezuela's underground resources. They have left nothing of international law intact.

We cannot know over what period or at what price they will sell those coins. But even holding them is a sufficiently large danger. They can manipulate the market as they please with that amount.

[SamReomo]

But even holding them is a sufficiently large danger. They can manipulate the market as they please with that amount.

That's very true, with 600k Bitcoin it won't be hard for them to manipulate the market multiple times for their own benefit. However, still it's not confirmed that they've got private keys of wallets that hold such amount of Bitcoin, but surely the man who's in their hands might open his month and tell everything about the private key of the wallet/s that hold those 600k Bitcoin.

[DanWalker]

But in this case, will this foreclosure which is rumored to be around $60 billion make sense in the end. From the beginning the US went after Maduro but when Venezuelan reserves were targeted as confiscation for me it was too far stretched because Venezuelan reserves are not necessarily Maduro's property so when it comes to confiscation then it is clear that Maduro's assets including crypto (if he has it) are confiscated.

600k BTC is only equivalent to about $60 billion, which is nothing compared to Venezuela's 303 million barrels of oil reserves, worth trillions of dollars. The US even dared to steal them despite international condemnation, so what do they have to fear in confiscating 600k BTC if Venezuela actually possesses that amount?

It's just that games like this are too commonplace and even if we don't explain it clearly, we will definitely know what it means, especially since the US has also done this not only once to several other countries that have been victims before.

If they want to steal or confiscate anything from anyone, they just need an excuse. The US has been doing this throughout the past century, it is not a new thing.

[Mr.sprin]

But in this case, will this foreclosure which is rumored to be around $60 billion make sense in the end. From the beginning the US went after Maduro but when Venezuelan reserves were targeted as confiscation for me it was too far stretched because Venezuelan reserves are not necessarily Maduro's property so when it comes to confiscation then it is clear that Maduro's assets including crypto (if he has it) are confiscated.

600k BTC is only equivalent to about $60 billion, which is nothing compared to Venezuela's 303 million barrels of oil reserves, worth trillions of dollars. The US even dared to steal them despite international condemnation, so what do they have to fear in confiscating 600k BTC if Venezuela actually possesses that amount?

It's just that games like this are too commonplace and even if we don't explain it clearly, we will definitely know what it means, especially since the US has also done this not only once to several other countries that have been victims before.

If they want to steal or confiscate anything from anyone, they just need an excuse. The US has been doing this throughout the past century, it is not a new thing.

It's entirely plausible that the US maneuver isn't related to or targeting Bitcoin assets, but rather something more. I believe it's more about Venezuela's oil reserves, and some political issues are also contributing factors. However, it seems the US wants to control Venezuela's energy reserves to establish itself as the most influential country in the world. So, I suspect the US will do anything to further its own interests, even if it violates regulations.

[DrBeer]

A small piece of news that could greatly affect the price of Bitcoin and the market as a whole:
"After Maduro's arrest, the US is considering confiscating Venezuela's secret crypto reserves.
We are talking about an underground storage facility with up to 600,000 bitcoins — that's about $60 billion obtained from the sale of oil, gold, and USDT in circumvention of sanctions. This was reported by CNBC.
If the assets are frozen, approximately 3% of the circulating supply will be removed from circulation for several years."

Questions for discussion:
- What scenarios do you anticipate?
- What impact will they have on the crypto market and Bitcoin?

Is there a source to this news that Venezuela actually have 600,000 Bitcoin? I have seen such comment on X but I was skeptical about it since the country was never on the news to have owned Bitcoin. So what will be the rationale of the US taking their Bitcoin? Is that not stealing because they belong to the people of Venezuela and not the Americans. I want to hear what others will say about this action that is appearing like stealing.

Of course, I cannot say for sure that this is the case. But Maduro's deals to circumvent sanctions were very likely carried out using Bitcoin. We can only guess how much oil was stolen from the Venezuelan people and sold by Maduro to his “friends.” I hope there will be an investigation and more realistic information about these alleged reserves.

[ultrloa]

If this is true, USA has once again committed theft as it always does. Trump is openly showing that he fears no one by seizing Venezuela's underground resources. They have left nothing of international law intact.

We cannot know over what period or at what price they will sell those coins. But even holding them is a sufficiently large danger. They can manipulate the market as they please with that amount.

Its good to qualify those thing since when they seize the asset of Venezuela, this one falls under the enforcement of the sanctions they have done. This one sounds harsh but it seems they are using the law they created to use it as their weapon on other country.

On price concerns I think if they decide to sell those seize assets they have it cannot bring much bigger impact on the market. Since the market is so big compare on those volumes they try to dump. Maybe some manipulators use this situation to manipulate the mind of people, but for sure same with other fuds also other manipulative stints happen on the market before those situation will just happen temporarily and market will eventually recover if there's possible dump will happen.

[fullfitlarry]

If this is true, USA has once again committed theft as it always does. Trump is openly showing that he fears no one by seizing Venezuela's underground resources. They have left nothing of international law intact.

And yet no one from the international community is condoning his act. It seems everyone is very quiet to that point that they could have approved what Trump does to a sovereign nation.

We cannot know over what period or at what price they will sell those coins. But even holding them is a sufficiently large danger. They can manipulate the market as they please with that amount.

Yes, that is concerning as well, it's a win win situation for Trump and his family to manipulate the price. And then they have oil, and then they have the Bitcoin that Maduro has, what more can they ask for?

[Danica22]

That's very true, with 600k Bitcoin it won't be hard for them to manipulate the market multiple times for their own benefit. However, still it's not confirmed that they've got private keys of wallets that hold such amount of Bitcoin, but surely the man who's in their hands might open his month and tell everything about the private key of the wallet/s that hold those 600k Bitcoin.

The US remains the global financial center, and most of the capital flowing through the market come from them. Therefore, if they want to manipulate the market for their own benefit, they can do so at any time. They do not need to wait to own more bitcoin to do that. They can use their power and influence to do that, and Trump has done so many times.

What is reprehensible is their disregard for international law and their act of theft. Therefore, even if Venezuela possesses such a huge amount of bitcoin. I hope it does not fall into the hands of thieves like the US.

[DrBeer]

If this is true, USA has once again committed theft as it always does. Trump is openly showing that he fears no one by seizing Venezuela's underground resources. They have left nothing of international law intact.

We cannot know over what period or at what price they will sell those coins. But even holding them is a sufficiently large danger. They can manipulate the market as they please with that amount.

What do you expect? In recent years, we have witnessed the complete impotence of international law, the impotence and corruption of international structures that are supposed to be responsible for maintaining order, such as the UN and similar organizations. State terrorism is perceived at most as “we express concern” and “we need to negotiate,” but no one punishes the criminals as they should be punished.
The world has gotten what it has brought upon itself through cowardice, corruption, and impotence: impunity and the right to commit lawlessness! So now we “enjoy” what we ourselves have created!
You can help a criminal not only by supporting them, but also by being passive and inactive, by doing nothing against them. Now it's too late to start suffering, “oh, what is happening?” It was the choice of the whole modern world, of all of us...
It seems that they may do the same with Bitcoin, disregarding laws and norms, and we will also sit and silently watch all this. The world is accustomed to remaining silent while observing crimes...
  

[KiaKia]

There is nothing more confusing in this new year than what's going on with USA Vs Venezuela, I believe that the numbers of Bitcoin that Venezuela had was one of the reasons why Trump took that advantage.

The confusion starts with the amount of Bitcoin that was held by Venezuela, they made some numbers public but it seems the number is much much higher.

This is my own opinion, Venezuela president knew this day would come? Maybe that's why they never went public with the exact amount of Bitcoin they held, every is now surprised that Venezuela had that much Bitcoin, someone else knew all along, Trump is a suspect.

[God Of Thunder]

So far, many people are still naive enough to and believe that what is happening in Venezuela is simply Trump fighting drug trafficking. Many people believe this is good for the Venezuelan people. Honestly, I can not understand what they are thinking when they say that.

Update: Not only that, the US even demanded that Venezuela sever ties with China, Russia, and Iran. At the same time, they established exclusive partnerships with the US in the production and export of oil.

And this is what they call democracy and freedom


https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-demands-venezuela-kick-china-russia-partner-us/story?id=128963238&
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-07/us-tells-venezuela-to-cut-ties-with-china-and-russia-abc-says?

The US media brainwashed them.
It is not rocket science. Everyone should understand why Trump kidnapped Maduro. The US wants the oil from Venezuela, and that's it. I would say it is not the US, but it is the Dicktator Trump. I think I have heard that he said "We don't need international laws", which is correct, actually. The International Court cannot do anything against the Dictator Trump. Do you think the US have the right to run Venezuela? Do they have rights over Venezuela's oil? The answer is, they do not. However, since the US is the most powerfull country, they are just doing whatever they want. World War 3 is loading.

[asriloni]

600k Bitcoin owned by Venezuela is still a speculation. There's no confirmation regarding the existence of Venezuela Bitcoin. So i think there's no need to prepare for a special scenario . It's caused by even if it's real US will able to seize that 600k BTC, they will be putting it to their strategic reserve.

There's no need to feel panic.  I don't expect the dump to happen caused by they have not yet dumped their bitcoin that is still on their strategic reserve. So it will be also applicable to the new seized BTC as well

[Forsyth Jones]

Regardless of whether this news is true or a rumor, the Venezuelan people were sinking into poverty, hyperinflation, and a seemingly endless dictatorship. Apparently, the tyrannical criminal Maduro was using crypto to circumvent USA sanctions. Since he had money, he probably had some reserves in BTC yes, he did, but not the Venezuelan people.

And if the USA confiscates these BTC or not, what difference will it make to the Venezuelan people who were already mired in misery under Maduro?

We know that the USA didn't capture Maduro solely with good intentions. However, this is the greatest gift Venezuelans received from Trump. He stated that he would lead Venezuela, investing billions to extract Venezuela's oil and make that country produce again. We don't know if he will fulfill this promise, but the chances of him doing so are high at the moment. So yes, Venezuela is currently in the black.