TL;DR Breakdown
- El Salvador adopts Bitcoin as legal tender
- Other countries adopting crypto
El Salvador, a country in Central America has become the first nation to adopt crypto currency after majority of the Salvadoran Congress passed it into law today.
Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador via his official Twitter handle celebrated the new development noting that the country has adopted Bitcoin as legal tender, a step he believes will create jobs and promote financial inclusion.
El Salvador President who is the youngest Latin America’s president and known for his love for digital currency as well as breaking the norms noted that the lawmakers have approved the bill adopting Bitcoin.
According to the 39-year-old leader the law was passed by 62 out of 84 supermajority votes. He also reiterated his belief that Bitcoin could boost the country’s economy and help improve El Salvador’s low banking penetration rate.
The country’s decision to recognize Bitcoin as legal tender started after the country secured a partnership with digital wallet company Strike, to build the country’s ultramodern financial infrastructure using bitcoin technology.
Douglas Rodriguez, El Salvador’s central bank president in an interview with state TV on Tuesday said that Bitcoin was already dominantly used in the country.
He also urged citizens not to be scared of the new initiative adding that Bitcoin would not replace the U.S. dollar but will be just another currency.
Aside El Salvador other countries looking into adopting crypto
While the adoption of Bitcoin by El Salvador was received with jubilation by the crypto community, it is also worth noting that other countries has been tilting towards embracing the top token as well.
Countries like Paraguay, Panama, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico has also indicated interest in unveiling a Bitcoin support law in the country.
The news to make the virtual coin legal tender is a rare slice of good news for the largest cryptocurrency, which is struggling to recover from a rout in May.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin which have been on a bearish run since mid-April and as a result of the news of to token rose by almost 15 percent, trading at $34,500 as of time of writing.
