El Salvador is the first country in the world to recognize Bitcoin as legal tender. Despite opposition from locals the government believes cryptocurrency will be a net positive for the economy and society.
El Salvador president confirmed that his government has purchased its first 200 Bitcoin ahead of the rollout of a new law set to make the cryptocurrency legal tender.
The purchase is part of a new $150 million Bitcoin fund passed last week by El Salvador’s Congress. The fund will be used to facilitate conversions from BTC to United States dollars in the lead-up to the new law being implemented.The BTC purchase was worth just over $10.36 million.
In June El Salvador became the first country in the world to recognize Bitcoin as legal tender. Although the decision was met with praise by the Bitcoin community, detractors from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund warned that the new strategy isn’t a good idea. More recently, internal opposition saw hundreds across the country protest against the new Bitcoin Law.
Meanwhile, Bank of America recently outlined at least four potential benefits to El Salvador accepting Bitcoin. In a report published in July, the bank said the country’s adoption of BTC could streamline remittances, promote financial digitization, provide greater consumer choice and open the country to foreign investors.
