El Salvador Just Changed Their Official Currency, Find Out What It Is

The Central American nation of El Salvador is stepping into a new era of cryptocurrency or as their President has announced, they are on their way to “make history” by making cryptocurrency their legal tender alongside the US dollar. The country’s government previously announced that they had bought 400 bitcoins, worth 20.9 million dollars. Some people believe that with this news, it will be cheaper and easier for migrants to send money to El Salvador. This is seen as a pivotal move since 24% of the GDP of the country comes from remittances sent from abroad. Since a lot of people in El Salvador do not have bank accounts, the country expects that this move will increase citizen’s access to financial services. 

As there are two faces of every coin, even the bitcoin’s success looms under uncertainty. Many agencies have warned the country against the ‘volatile destabilizing effect of the cryptocurrency.’ 

Reports suggest that now people will be able to make payments in bitcoins. The country has been promoting cryptocurrency since June and has been installing ATMs nationwide. In a survey conducted with 20 enterprises, only three have agreed to accept this digital currency, also it has been found that 70% of El Salvadorians do not want to accept cryptocurrency.