ALBA Countries Move Toward Virtual Money

The countries of the Venezuelan-backed Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA) last week recommitted themselves to moving toward a new virtual currency called the Sucre to pay for international transactions between member countries.

“The Sucre is a virtual money that will allow the countries of ALBA to trade without using (U.S.) dollars,” said Orlando Gomez, director of the Americas for Nicaragua’s Foreign Ministry.

Gómez said the Sucre, which will start being used next year, will be backed by the foreign reserves of all the member countries of ALBA.

Despite ALBA’s enthusiasm for the new virtual money, no one has yet explained the logistics of how it will work, or what its exchange rate will be.

The countries of ALBA have also expressed their desire to move toward a common monetary system, such as that of the Euro used by the EU.

–Nica Times