John McAfee suggests Cuba issue a cryptocurrency

Cuban officials had previously revealed that they are considering developing a cryptocurrency to circumvent U.S. economic sanctions. Internet security expert John McAfee recently announced that he will be collaborating with the Cuban government as a cryptocurrency consultant.

Previous reports indicated that the Cuban government announced on state television that it may use cryptocurrency as part of an overall plan to promote economic development amid escalating U.S. sanctions.

However, the Cuban government has not clearly stated whether it will issue tokens or use existing cryptocurrencies. This move may be influenced by Venezuela, which launched its own oil-backed Petro early last year.

John McAfee, known as the antivirus software pioneer, claimed on Twitter that cryptocurrency projects are not only feasible but also very simple, and he is even willing to provide guidance to Cuba at no cost.

Cuba is planning to use Cryptocurrency to get around the 63 years of economic strangulation imposed upon 14 million Cuban people by the insanity of the US Government. Finally, a large scale, real world application for Cryptocurrencies. If Cuba wants my help, I am here. pic.twitter.com/zgHUNwRcdE

— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) July 3, 2019

The report pointed out that various countries seem to be inspired by Venezuela's issuance of an oil-backed cryptocurrency in the idea of "using cryptocurrency to avoid U.S. economic sanctions."

However, despite Venezuela's continuous promotion of the oil-backed cryptocurrency as a global oil payment method within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, over a year has passed, and the oil-backed cryptocurrency has not taken off internationally. U.S. President Trump has also added the oil-backed cryptocurrency to the sanctions asset list.

In response to this, McAfee attributed the failure of the oil-backed cryptocurrency to "wrong expectations."

You cannot just create a currency and expect it to develop; the key to developing a currency is to execute it according to the realities of the country. You must develop a system based on a suitable blockchain that meets the specific needs of the country or economic situation.

McAfee stated that helping the Cuban government develop cryptocurrency stems from his libertarian ideals as a software engineer. McAfee even plans to run as a Libertarian candidate in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, with Cuba as his campaign headquarters. It is not yet confirmed whether the Cuban government has accepted McAfee's proposal. However, this has not stopped him from repeatedly recommending himself to the Cuban government, stating:

There are probably fewer than 10 people in the world who know how to create cryptocurrencies, and one of them is certainly me.

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