The Central American country of El Salvador has added Bitcoin as a legal currency. This decision comes after the new president, Nayib Bukele, took office in early 2019 and quickly made this move to increase transparency and digitalize the economy. He was following the precedent of Venezuela and other countries who have done this.
In this article we’ll cover:
– Why El Salvador added Bitcoin as a currency
– How you actually use bitcoin in El Salvador
– Is this significant news for Bitcoin’s growth?
Bitcoin has been the subject of much speculation over the years since its invention.
Many people in government in countries like the United States doubt that it is even real or legitimate but some countries have actually begun accepting it as an official currency. El Salvador became one of the first countries to accept Bitcoin for legal transactions and as legal tender.
El Salvador wants to attract more investment and businesses. The country is struggling with high inflation, which has caused people to invest in other currencies as a way of protecting their money from devaluation.
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Why Did El Salvador Make Bitcoin An Official Currency?
El Salvador made Bitcoin an official currency so that they can increase transparency and digitalize their economy. El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele , has been very vocal about his support for technology companies in the past few years making this a priority to focus on blockchain technologies.
Bitcoin is not as popular in El Salvador as it is in other countries because many of its citizens do not actually know how this currency works and what makes it different from regular money.
How Can You Use Bitcoin in El Salvador?
– You can buy Bitcoins at local ATMs
– You can send money to a wallet address at some restaurants and stores
There are ATMs that you can use to buy Bitcoins and even some restaurants in El Salvador that accept Bitcoin as a form of payment.
If you want to pay with Bitcoin at a restaurant in El Salvador you have to check if the restaurant accepts Bitcoin before you go and if they do then you have to ask the waiter for their “Bitcoin address”. This is an important step because it’s the only way to get your money from your wallet to their wallet.
Once the restaurant has given you their bitcoin address, open up your wallet and scan it or type in all necessary information so you can send them some Bitcoins. Once they receive the Bitcoins, the money will be added to their account and you can pay for your meal.
Is This Significant News For Bitcoin?
If a richer country were to include Bitcoin as a legal form of payment it would be easier for other countries to follow suit, but until then El Salvador is the first country in Central America that has recognized this virtual currency.
Regulators in the United States are trying to figure out how they should regulate Bitcoin, which is one of the reasons why people are still skeptical about investing in this currency.
Unfortunately a country like the United States will not add Bitcoin to their list of official currencies. In fact, the United States has been very opposed to Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general.
Conclusion
In conclusion, El Salvador added Bitcoin to their list of official currencies which means they recognize it as a legal currency. This is good news for Bitcoin because it shows that smaller countries are willing to be open-minded and adopt new technology.
Bitcoin’s widespread adoption isn’t certain, but it will be interesting to watch countries try and figure out how they want to deal with the new technology.