The value of the Lebanese pound dropped 50% in only 10 days and the currency is now worth one satoshi, as the latest cryptocurrency news show. The ongoing monetary crisis has seen Lebanon and its national currency plummeting over the last ten days, reaching parity with a single satoshi.
As it continues to shed value, the national currency of Lebanon is right in the deepening monetary crisis in the country, and some unofficial reports indicate that this pound or lira has lost 50% of its purchasing power in less than two weeks.
Update:
Having lost half its value in the last 10 days, the Lebanese Lira is now worth one satoshi.
— Saifedean Ammous (@saifedean) July 1, 2020
On July 2, the local crypto advocate Saifedean Ammous who is the author of The Bitcoin Standard took it to Twitter to comment on the Lebanese pound, noting how it “lost half its value in the last 10 days, the Lebanese lira is now worth one satoshi” and comprising a historic low for the coin at roughly $0.000093.
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Before this, we could see Ammous noting that “ten years ago, one Lebanese lira was worth 0.67 Bitcoin.” This is why he also covered the topic of how important Bitcoin may be for fiat currency devaluations like these.
Ten years ago, one Lebanese lira was worth 0.67 bitcoin.
Today it’s worth 2 satoshis.
— Saifedean Ammous (@saifedean) June 20, 2020
Currently, it is still hard to confirm the precise exchange rate as the Lebanon lira has been officially valued at $0.00066 since year 1997. Still, the economic mismanagement led to the emergence of a parallel market for the currency, and some reports show that its value plummeted 86% in roughly one year.
People following the latest Bitcoin news and altcoin updates could have escaped this major drop by investing in crypto. After all, the major crisis with the Lebanese pound has crippled daily life in the country as the residents are now preparing for a wave of emigration when the international airport opens, following the COVID-19 restrictions.
“We’re like prisoners who do nothing but try to plot our escape,” 32-year-old graphic designer Bernard Hage told Al Jazeera.
On another note, this economic turmoil has revitalized interest in cryptocurrency among the youth in Lebanon, and an informal Twitter survey in May showed that 57.5% of the locals would prefer to receive their salaries in Bitcoin (BTC) rather than the Lebanese pound.
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As the 29-year old Mahmoud Dgheim told Al Jazeera in February this year:
“Right now, Lebanese are interested in escaping tight restrictions on cash withdrawals and transfers. They basically want financial freedom.”
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