El Salvador’s bitcoin legislation is in force immediately, ie it has been in force since last Wednesday. Merchants now have a 90-day period to prepare technically and organizationally to receive bitcoin payments.
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President Nayib Bukele presented the introduction of bitcoin as a way to “meet the future” in early June. Since the introduction of bitcoin as official currency, he has promised above all that Salvadorans living abroad will be able to send money back to their homeland more easily. At present, the local economy is practically dependent on money from abroad. Foreign payments account for 22 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.
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Here’s to watching
Photo: Jose Cabezas, Reuters
“Bitcoins are a way to create new jobs and help people with their financial integration into the legal economy,” Bukele said, adding that “70 percent of the population does not have a bank account and works illegally.”
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Salvador has other attractions ready to pay for bitcoins. “The country will make it possible for anyone who invests at least three bitcoins in the country to obtain permanent citizenship. However, he does not yet plan to include the cryptocurrency in his foreign exchange reserves, “said economist Lukáš Kovanda.
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With regard to the current exchange rate, anyone who invests at least 2.5 million crowns in the country can obtain citizenship.
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The others give their hands away from the cryptocurrencies
However, new Salvadoran legislation comes at a time when others are giving up on bitcoin – and other cryptocurrencies. Elon Musk, for example, announced last week that he would no longer be able to buy electric cars for bitcoins at his car manufacturer Tesla.
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Last month, China also decided to curb cryptocurrency transactions, which, like Musk’s decision, caused bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to fall, Reuters reported. Thus, Chinese financial institutions and payment companies are no longer allowed to provide any cryptocurrency services in the world’s most populous country.
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Iran, in turn, decided to place cryptocurrency mining on the list of illegal activities due to high demands on electricity consumption. This happened after this Asian state repeatedly faced power outages. The BBC server informed about it.
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