Myanmar’s Exiled Government Declares USDT as Official Currency
Myanmar’s exiled government, the National Unity Government, has declared Tether’s U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin USDT the official currency of the nation, to fight the military regime in power.
According to NUG’s Ministry of Planning, Finance, and Investment issued public statement, the Myanmar kyat – the currency issued by Myanmar’s central bank – is now invalid and Tether’s dollar-backed stablecoin is constituted as legal tender.
The NUG is an exiled government led by the jailed leader Aung San Suu Kyi. It is an alliance of pro-democracy groups and elected members of parliament who were toppled in a military coup earlier in February this year. While the NUG currently doesn’t hold any power or control any territory in the country, in October, the European Union formally recognized it as the country’s only legitimate representative.
The exiled government’s move to legitimize USDT is an effort to circumvent the current regime’s complete control over the financial system.
According to the statement, “the military regime controls the central bank,” adding that the main reason behind Tether’s incorporation was “to improve and accelerate the current trading and financial services.”
Over the past several months, the military regime has arrested many Burmese citizens for sending donations to NUG’s arm wing, the People’s Defence Forse, according to local news media.
In May this year the Central Bank of Myanmar declared all digital currencies illegal and threatened imprisonment and fines to any offenders.
The government in exile is now encouraging people to use Tether’s USDT stablecoin instead of the country’s current official currency, the kyat, which has reportedly lost over 60% of its value against the dollar since the beginning of September.
NUG’s decision to specifically promote the use of Tether, instead of cryptocurrencies or stablecoins in general, was met with worry and skepticism within crypto circles.
Tether has been at the center of many controversies over the years, the most relevant for this matter being the open questions and suspicions regarding the quality of assets held in the stablecoin issuer’s reserves, and it has been under DOJ’s investigation.
