Venezuelans are no longer counting their bills. Instead, because the bolivar is so devalued, citizens weigh the currency. It’s the final signal that hyperinflation is on the way for the resource-rich socialist paradise.
According to a report by Bloomberg News, cash-weighing isn’t prevalent across the entire Latin American country, but it is increasing. And it’s starting to replicate what we saw in the Weimar Republic in the 1920s, Yugoslavia in the 1990s and Zimbabwe a couple of years ago.
Ultimately, when you begin to weigh cash then it’s the final stop on the road to runaway inflation. The inflation rate is estimated to be as high as 1,500 percent. The 100-bolivar banknote is worth about 10 cents.
The only difference this time around is that consumers are piling their cash in gym bags instead of wheel barrels. The news outlet describes the bolivar as more of a nuisance than a currency among numerous Venezuelans. And it’s only going to get worse:
“A few weeks ago, however, the government quietly asked five currency companies to submit bids for bigger bills — 500, 1000, 5000, 10,000 , and perhaps a 20,000-bolivar note, according to someone with direct knowledge of the order.
“The request is for the bills to be ready in time for Christmas bonuses. Normally such an order takes four to six months and so far no tender has been awarded. To minimize time and cost, the government is considering swapping only the color, not the design, of existing bills, and adding zeros, the person said. The Central Bank said it had no comment.”
Although we may be laughing at the turn of events, it’s not funny to the average Venezuelan, who is putting his life at risk when he carries his gym bags of bolivars on the crime-ridden streets.
“Many, like Jose Marcano, a 26-year-old office messenger, find themselves caught in a permanent bottleneck. Marcano spends hours each week depositing his employer’s cash which he carries in black plastic bags on his motorbike. When he can’t make it to an ATM, he flies through stop signs and traffic lights, afraid of getting robbed.
“‘Carrying this amount of cash is incredibly dangerous,’ he said while feeding stacks of bolivars into an ATM. ‘You put your life at risk.’
“While there are credit and debit cards in Venezuela, government data show that more than a third of the labor force is informal, meaning they mostly work for cash. That includes taxi drivers, street hawkers and a slew of service jobs. In addition, state pensions to the elderly are generally paid in cash.
“Authorities have recently taken a small step to ease the cash crunch, allowing consumers to use bank cards to withdraw legal tender from convenience stores and pharmacies.”
This is what you get when you live in a country with socialism, price controls and dictatorship: the world’s poorest millionaires. The moniker of the world’s poorest billionaires belongs to the people of the democratic socialist state of Zimbabwe.
When the U.S. dollar collapse takes place, will millions of Americans resort to gym bags and cash-weighing to get by?
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