Black-market money changers charge commissions of up to 20% to score paper money for small business people who pay their workers in cash. Jean Paul Leidenz, a senior economist at the Caracas thinktank Ecoanalítica, says there are about 13bn banknotes in circulation in Venezuela. Instead, Maduro tried to paint the cash crisis as an opportunity for Venezuela to ditch cash altogether. These days, Venezuelans pay for the smallest purchases – from a pack of gum to newspapers – with credit or debit cards. He said he saves his scarce bolívar notes for bus fares and other transactions that require cash.

Source: The Guardian November 30, 2017 11:09 UTC