September 7, 2021 will remain in history for El Salvador, because it is the day when bitcoin acquired legal tender alongside the national currency, namely the dollar. The initiative, which makes the Central American country the only one in the world to have taken a similar decision on cryptocurrency, had already been announced at the beginning of June and placed in the economic recovery plan wanted by President Nyib Bukele and became law. of Parliament, with the hope that among other things the move could boost consumption and increase financial inclusion in a country where citizens often do not access the main banking services.
Thus, based on the law already approved (which among other things allocates a fund of 150 million dollars to favor conversions from cryptocurrency to US currency), from 7 September economic operators and businesses are not only obliged to accept bitcoin but they must also indicate all prices of products and services both in dollars and in the corresponding quantity in digital currency. All with one exception: salaries and pensions, as government sources have pointed out, will continue to be paid in dollars. President Bukele, among other things also very active on social networks on the issue, in a statement that was nevertheless considered ambiguous, explained that the citizen “can accept, but not receive” bitcoin.
The head of state claimed on Twitter that “as with any innovation, the #Bitcoin process in El Salvador has a learning curve. Any path towards the future is like this, and it will not be achieved in a day, or in a month ». Turning to the numbers of a change that appears epochal, Bukele announced that the government has already bought 400 bitcoins for a consideration, at the official exchange rate against the dollar on September 6 (51,923.8), equal to 20.7 million dollars. Also starting from 7 September, citizens can download an “app” dedicated to transactions in digital currency on their mobile phones, receiving bitcoins for 30 dollars as a gift.
However, it was Bukele himself who reported some malfunctions of the application: «The app is currently disconnected and therefore users are asked to wait a moment. Whatever data you want to enter at present will be presented as an error ». The technicians, he added, “are working to increase the capacity of the servers to capture images. It’s a simple problem but it can’t be solved if the app is running ».
Please change and minimize problems, the government has promised that 200 dedicated ATMs and 50 public information points will soon be installed. Although the head of state enjoys a certain popularity in the country, polls seem to show a certain discontent with the decision, also linked to the strong volatility that often characterizes the trend of the cryptocurrency. According to a survey by the Institute of Public Opinion (Iop), 66.7% of the population believes that the bitcoin law should be repealed and 65.2% is against the government using public funds to finance its introduction.