CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela on Tuesday was set to become the first country to launch its own version of bitcoin, a move it hopes will provide a much-needed boost to its credit-stricken economy.

Officials say the so-called petro is backed by Venezuela's crude oil reserves, the largest in the world, though it hasn't released any details on how this will be guaranteed.

"My advice would be to tread very carefully with this — especially considering the track record of the Venezuelan government," said Federico Bond, co-founder of Signatura, a digital startup based in Argentina.

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