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MYANMAR GOVERNMENT IN EXILE OPTS FOR USDT. Myanmar’s National Unity Government (NUG), currently out of power as a result of a military coup, has announced it is advocating to use a crypto stablecoin to replace the country’s official Kyat currency.
An official statement by the exiled leadership read:
“To improve and accelerate the current trading and financial services, the following digital currency, a stablecoin, now has been officially recognized for usage within the nation – Tether (USDT)…
“Thus, declaring the order note (September 2020) released by the Central Bank of Myanmar as invalid. The military regime controls the central bank.”
The reasons for the move to USDT could be tied to the efforts of the NUG to remain funded in the face of tight monetary and banking controls being exerted by the military Junta currently in control in the country.
Myanmar has been roiled in a crisis over a 2020 election which split the nation over claims of fraud and subterfuge.
Massive protests against an ensuing military coup have been met with harsh measures.
The European Union has legally recognized the NUG as the country’s only legitimate representation.
The Trends Journal has extensively covered the Myanmar crisis. Some touchstone stories include:
- “YOUTH REVOLUTION 2021: MYANMAR MILITARY VS. THE PEOPLE” (23 Feb 2021)
- “MYANMAR: OPPOSITION FORMS NEW GOVERNMENT” (20 Apr 2021)
The Trends Journal noted cryptos would allow political dissident movements greater power in resisting authoritarian crackdowns, in articles such as “HUMAN RIGHTS FOUNDATION HEAD SAYS “BITCOIN IS THE REVOLUTION” (29 Jun 2021).
WISDOMTREE WILL TRY AGAIN WITH “UPGRADED” BITCOIN ETF. WisdomTree, a New York-based asset management firm, isn’t taking rejection lightly.
It has reapplied with the Securities and Exchange Commission petition for a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). This time they’ve listed the U.S. National Bank Association as a custodian for shares of its proposed Bitcoin Trust.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) denied a proposal from the Cboe BZX Exchange to list and trade shares in WisdomTree’s Bitcoin Trust on Dec. 2.
The SEC is still reviewing a different ETF application for WisdomTree’s Ethereum Trust, which was filed in May.
WisdomTree manages over $76 billion in assets, and is noted for its crypto ventures. It has so far established four cryptocurrency indexes in the United States and Europe to give investors with a portfolio exposure to the sector.
The firm also offers an exchange-traded product with exposure to a basket of cryptocurrencies on the Euronext markets in Paris and Amsterdam.
So far the SEC has rejected all attempts by financial firms to list so-called spot ETFs. In October it did approve several investment products tied to cryptocurrency futures.
Many analysts say the U.S. is falling behind as a result of the SEC’s rejections, as well a high profile legal battle with XRP over whether that crypto will be classified as a security, a commodity, or something else.
At a Congressional hearing this past week, Brian Brooks, Bitfury CEO and former Acting Comptroller of the Currency, told lawmakers:
“There are some products that are legal in other countries and are just not legal here. One of the things that makes crypto risky is that consumers may not understand the difference between one token and another token, so they may want to diversify […] we don’t allow that in the United States—we do allow it in Canada, we allow it in Germany, Singapore, Portugal and a number of other places.”
Brooks made the comments at a hearing on Digital Assets and the Future of Finance with the House Committee on Financial Services.
According to Cointelegraph.com, Brooks went on to say that “If you’re a developer of [exchange-traded funds], there’s no fuzzy line, it’s super clear: You cannot do that here, so you have to go abroad.”