Venezuela’s illegal currency market is so commonplace and open that it seems practically… legal. Often ignored by international media, but of great consequence to the country, money exchange in Venezuela is one of the most surprising ventures a foreigner can undertake.

Since there is so little official information on this unofficial market I will relay my experience:

The going rate for the Bolivar Fuerte (the successor to the bolivar which was unceremoniously dumped in January 2008 by chopping off three zeros from the currency) is 9.5 Bolivares to the U.S. Dollar. That means if you have 1,000 Dollars you can exchange them for 9,500 BF. Considering that the official exchange rate is 4.3 to the Dollar this makes a huge difference, especially when a simple tuna sandwich coke and fries in Caracas can run you 400 BF.

The wonderful yet curious thing about the market is how open Venezuelans are about it. There is no whispering, or back room deals. One of the first things a Venezuelan asks any foreigner is if they were able to exchange money, and at what rate they exchanged, outraged if the foreigner got any less than they deserve.

Venezuelans are honest, after all, and heaven forbid you be ripped off on the black market.

This is highly different than most other black markets, including the developing one in Argentina, where though illegal money exchange due to new currency controls is commonplace, it is still conducted in a secretive manner. The last time I exchanged money in Buenos Aires I was directed, via text, to wait on a corner for a man dressed in black, then a woman carrying a leopard print bag named Olga, who ultimately directed me into a travel agency and after 10 minutes re-appeared with my cash. None of that in Venezuela.

Of course, foreigners shouldn’t walk around waving Dollar bills in the air, far from it. These things should only be done with trusted sources, friends of friends and a certain level of instinct. That said, if you have one friend in Venezuela, you have many.