RESEARCH: Venezuela Cryptocurrency and Digital Asset Securities Regulatory Requirements

Executive Summary

• Venezuela has no dedicated cryptocurrency or digital asset securities law as of 2025; the nearest frameworks are the 2017 Superintendencia de las Instituciones del Sector Bancario (SUDEBAN) resolutions on financial technology and the 2018 Decree No. 3,196 creating the Petro (PTR), but neither established a functional licensing regime for private crypto securities. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• The Comisión Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (CONATEL) regulates telecommunications infrastructure only and has no statutory mandate over digital asset securities; no crypto securities regulator has been designated. Conatel - Conatel
• No licensing or registration pathway exists for cryptocurrency exchanges, brokers, or digital asset securities issuers in Venezuela; zero entities have been licensed under any crypto-specific regime. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• Practical reality: crypto businesses operate in a legal gray zone, with the state-owned Petro (PTR) as the only state-sanctioned token, and private crypto securities are effectively unregulated and unlicensed. Reuters
• The regulatory framework is fragmented across banking (BCV, SUDEBAN), securities (CNV), tax (SENIAT), and telecommunications (CONATEL) authorities, but no single body has issued comprehensive crypto securities rules, creating high legal risk for market entrants. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• As of 2025, there is no legal pathway to operate a cryptocurrency or digital asset securities business in Venezuela; any such activity is unauthorized and carries high legal risk.

Regulatory Framework

• The primary financial regulators for securities and banking are the Comisión Nacional de Valores (CNV) under the Ley del Mercado de Valores (Gaceta Oficial No. 38,843, 2007) and the Banco Central de Venezuela (BCV) with SUDEBAN as the banking supervisor; neither has issued regulations specifically governing cryptocurrency securities. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• CONATEL’s mandate is limited to telecommunications services, internet infrastructure, and domain management; it has no authority over financial securities. Conatel - Conatel
• The 2018 Decree No. 3,196 (Petro) created a state-backed cryptoasset but did not extend a regulatory framework to private issuers or exchanges. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• Venezuela is not a member of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and has been subject to a FATF call for action since June 2022, highlighting strategic AML/CFT deficiencies; a subsequent call for action was issued in February 2024, reinforcing these deficiencies. Reuters
• No primary legislation (law name, number, date, status) specific to crypto or digital asset securities has been published in the Gaceta Oficial; the only crypto-related decree is the Petro decree. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• Cross-reference: For FATF status and AML/CFT implications, see the AML/KYC Requirements section.

Licensing Requirements

• No license type, application process, timeline, or structural requirements for cryptocurrency exchanges, digital asset brokers, or securities issuers exist in Venezuelan law. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• No capital requirements or monetary thresholds (in bolivars, USD, or EUR) for any crypto-related license have been established; no such requirements have been published in official registers to date. Reuters
• The number of entities licensed to operate in crypto or digital asset securities in Venezuela is zero. Conatel - Conatel
• The decision tree has been moved to the Practical Guidance section (see below).

Practical Guidance

• Decision tree for market entrants (advisory guidance, not regulatory intelligence):
  1. Confirm no crypto securities license exists under current Venezuelan law.
  2. Any entity performing financial intermediation must register with BCV/SUDEBAN under general banking law (Ley de Instituciones del Sector Bancario).
  3. Seek legal opinion on whether the proposed activity falls under the Petro decree (Decree 3,196) or securities law (Ley del Mercado de Valores) and engage CNV for a no-action letter if securities tokens are involved.
  4. Register with SENIAT for tax purposes and implement AML/KYC controls aligned with FATF recommendations despite absence of local crypto-specific rules.

AML/KYC Requirements

• No AML/KYC requirements specific to cryptocurrency or digital asset securities have been issued by SUDEBAN, CNV, or the financial intelligence unit (UNIF). Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• FATF status: As noted in the Regulatory Framework section, Venezuela is not a FATF member and has been subject to a FATF call for action since June 2022, highlighting strategic AML/CFT deficiencies; entities should apply FATF Recommendation 15 (virtual assets) as best practice. Reuters
• The only consumer protection measure referenced in official sources is CONATEL’s hotline (0800-CONATEL / 2662835) for verifying telecom operator authorization, which is unrelated to financial AML/KYC. Conatel - Conatel
• No record-keeping durations, threshold amounts, or reporting formats for crypto transactions are prescribed in Venezuelan regulation. Reuters

Enforcement Actions

• No publicly reported enforcement actions against crypto securities entities have been identified in official sources as of [June 2025]. Conatel - Conatel
• CONATEL’s reported activities are administrative (diagnostics, infrastructure planning) and do not include punitive measures against any entity. Conatel - Conatel
• No case names, violation descriptions, outcomes, or dates of enforcement in the crypto space are cited in official sources. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)

Tax Treatment

• No tax guidance for virtual assets has been issued by the Servicio Nacional Integrado de Administración Aduanera y Tributaria (SENIAT). The Venezuelan Income Tax Law (Ley de Impuesto Sobre la Renta) and VAT Law (Ley de Impuesto al Valor Agregado) contain no provisions addressing cryptocurrencies. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• SENIAT has not published any resolution, administrative ruling, or decree on crypto taxation; silence implies general tax principles apply but creates uncertainty for compliance. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• No tax rates, thresholds, or reporting obligations specific to crypto transactions are mentioned in any official source. Reuters
• For authoritative SENIAT guidance, refer to the SENIAT official website and the Gaceta Oficial; the absence of crypto-specific provisions means general tax principles apply, creating compliance uncertainty.

Key Gaps & Risks

• The most significant gap is the complete absence of a designated crypto securities regulator; CNV and BCV/SUDEBAN oversee securities and banking but have not extended rules to digital asset securities, leaving a regulatory vacuum. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• No primary law, decree, or resolution governing cryptocurrency securities exists, meaning there is no legal certainty for issuers, exchanges, or investors. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• Businesses face the risk of operating without a license in a jurisdiction where no licensing pathway exists, creating exposure to discretionary state action. Conatel - Conatel
• The lack of any AML/KYC framework for crypto means businesses cannot establish compliant protocols, exposing them to financial crime risk and potential international sanctions exposure. Reuters
• Without tax guidance, businesses cannot determine liability; SENIAT’s silence leaves crypto gains in legal limbo. Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• The mismatch between active state promotion of the Petro and the absence of a framework for private crypto securities represents an implementation gap; even if off-page laws exist, no enforcement or licensing activity is visible. Conatel - Conatel
• As of 2025, there is no legal pathway to operate a cryptocurrency or digital asset securities business in Venezuela; any such activity is unauthorized and carries high legal risk.

Sources

• Conatel - Conatel
• Venezuela presidency (in Spanish)
• Venezuela News | Today's Latest Stories | Reuters
• O mercado secundário de valores mobiliários (Brazilian Secondary Securities Markets)