The cryptocurrency exchange platform, Binance, recently reported on the existence of inconveniences and greater risk controls in the credit and debit card payment channel for users in Venezuela. According to an official statement issued through its community channels, cryptocurrency purchase operations with virtual cards in dollars issued in Panama, such as Zinli or Wally, as well as those financed by Venezuelan banking institutions, are experiencing high rejection rates and operational restrictions.
According to the information provided by the exchange, the most recurring problems detected in recent weeks include failures in receiving verification codes (OTP), additional limits for virtual cards and, in some cases, the total disappearance of the card payment option for certain profiles.
This situation has generated a considerable increase in customer service requestsaccording to the company, which monitors the restrictions imposed by payment processors and banking entities.
The new «exchange bicycle» in Venezuela
The difficulties reported by Binance do not occur in isolation. Currently, the market in Venezuela is going through an arbitrage dynamic that is reminiscent of the times of the «quota scraper» experienced between 2014 and 2015. This phenomenon, called by analysts as a new «exchange bicycle», originates from the differential between the official exchange rate of the US dollar in national banks and the exchange price of the stablecoin linked to the dollar USD Tether (USDT) in secondary markets. The process of this arbitration is based on a cycle where users acquire foreign currency in local banks at the official rate. and transfer them to international debit cards or virtual wallets like Zinli or Wally. They then use those funds to purchase USDT on platforms like Binance, then liquidate those assets in the peer-to-peer (P2P) market at a significantly higher rate. While the acquisition cost in banking can average 515 bolivars per dollar, the exchange value in digital markets can range close to 580 bolivars, according to data from the analysis platform P2P.Army. It should be noted that, despite the obstacles detected in direct purchases with cards within the global platform, the purchase and sale operations of bitcoin and other digital currencies in Binance’s P2P (person-to-person) market do not report any incidents. This method continues to be the main means of liquidity for Venezuelan users, those who avoid traditional payment processors to transact directly between individuals.
Use of international cards from public and private banking
Despite the specific restrictions indicated by Binance for the direct purchase of digital assets, users of the national banking system have reported that international cards issued by institutions such as Banco de Venezuela, Banesco and Banco del Tesoro They maintain operation in other global services.
According to user reports, these financial instruments are currently working for payments on platforms such as Facebook, PayPal, Roblox, Fortnite, Shein and Amazon. However, in the digital asset ecosystem, its use for direct purchase on Binance.us appears to be restricted exclusively to residents of the United States. For these transactions to be successful in permitted businesses, It is essential to have an available balance in foreign currency and have the online payment option enabled. Although it is noted that random rejections may occur depending on the destination platform.
