Will El Salvador become the "Home of Bitcoin"?

[Obito]

Why should El Salvador be THE “Home of Bitcoin”. Did everyone already forget China? The El Salvadorian government can easily cast Bitcoin away too, just as simply as they welcomed it, and gave it a “home”. OP, Bitcoin doesn’t actually need a home.

Of the two, I would probably choose El Salvador more than China, remember how they cracked down on the miners in their country? That's not the characteristic of a country that we should call the home for bitcoin, it's quite the opposite because it's more a warzone for bitcoin or even cryptocurrencies in general. I think that if El Salvador delivers what they promised to do and did more than expected, probably some might consider giving that title.

[amihada]

Why should El Salvador be THE “Home of Bitcoin”. Did everyone already forget China? The El Salvadorian government can easily cast Bitcoin away too, just as simply as they welcomed it, and gave it a “home”. OP, Bitcoin doesn’t actually need a home.

I agree that bitcoin doesn't need a free bitcoin house, no one can control it, including the one who created bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto, the country of El Salvador was indeed the first country to accept bitcoin but there is no guarantee that in the future the country of El Salvador will still accept bitcoin in their country.

[Tumanggor]

Why should El Salvador be THE “Home of Bitcoin”. Did everyone already forget China? The El Salvadorian government can easily cast Bitcoin away too, just as simply as they welcomed it, and gave it a “home”. OP, Bitcoin doesn’t actually need a home.

I believe the OP's "home" means the most friendly, safest country for Bitcoin and its holders
in world history, El Salvador has listed itself as "the first country in the world to recognize Bitcoin as a legal tender"

China is indeed an important place for Bitcoin, but after BTC miners were banned there, China was nothing

[Wind_FURY]

Why should El Salvador be THE “Home of Bitcoin”. Did everyone already forget China? The El Salvadorian government can easily cast Bitcoin away too, just as simply as they welcomed it, and gave it a “home”. OP, Bitcoin doesn’t actually need a home.

Of the two, I would probably choose El Salvador more than China, remember how they cracked down on the miners in their country? That's not the characteristic of a country that we should call the home for bitcoin, it's quite the opposite because it's more a warzone for bitcoin or even cryptocurrencies in general. I think that if El Salvador delivers what they promised to do and did more than expected, probably some might consider giving that title.

That’s because El Salvador is currently welcoming it, what if it will spit it out next year?

Plus the point is not choosing between China and El Salvador, it’s to choose NOTHING between the two. They need Bitcoin, whether they want to actually use the technology, or want to merely profit from it by purchasing it then selling it later. Both options are A-OK, but Bitcoin doesn’t need a home, it will never need a home.

[tiCeR]

El Salvador is now the first country in the world to embrace Bitcoin as legal tender. This is good news for Bitcoin and cryptocurrency in general, because it increases mainstream adoption and demand like skyrocket. China's recent crackdown on Bitcoin, could force miners to move to other countries with a friendly stance towards it. El Salvador could see an increase in miner's interest as China and other restrictive countries lose luster in the world of crypto. Of course, the impact won't be that much because El Salvador is a third-world country. Yet, it's something better than nothing.

What are your thoughts? Do you think El Salvador will become the "Home of Bitcoin"? If not, why? Will other countries adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in the future? Or is it still too early to tell? Why do you think developed countries haven't done such a move yet? Your input will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Wasn't Puerto Rico also called the home of Bitcoin a while ago?

I think it is good to see these smaller states now make first moves towards full integration of Bitcoin. It's comparable to ships. If you have a small ship you can more quickly adapt to or even initiate change. There is less to lose for these states. I wouldn't say they are braver than other, stronger nations. The bigger nations just have trouble to transition. Making Bitcoin legal tender doesn't sound to me as if it were to have any severe impact, but we will see and it will be interesting to observe if it does have any impact on El Salvador at all.

[DdmrDdmr]

Just to add some insights provided by a survey by Disruptiva on 1233 locals, concerning the Bitcoin Law:

The survey consists of over 30 questions, of which the following seem relevant to me:
-   77% of the population do not consider it to be good decision to make bitcoin a legal tender there.
-   64% are not willing to receive their salary in bitcoins.
-   Nearly half of them do not know anything about bitcoin. 48,2% declare knowing bitcoin somewhat, and 4,9% state they know a lot about it.
-   75% have got a smartphone to connect to the internet, but 23,5% have no means to connect.
-   67,14% of the respondents that were also merchants, declare that they are not willing to receive payments in bitcoin.
-   60,7% are not in possession of a bank account, and 67,5% do not have a bank card (credit/debit).
-   95% believe that the dollar gives them financial stability (vs 1% that believe bitcoin will).
-   Only 2,5% of the respondents have experience performing crypto TXs previously.
-   40% consider the Bitcoin Law favours large companies/businessmen.
-   25,6% believe bitcoin will improve the economy, but 43,6% believe it will make it worse.
-   The more the age, the less people know about bitcoin, and the less positive they are about it.

Quite a bit of pedagogy is still going to be required over the coming months, and at a fast rate too …

See (In Spanish):
https://www.disruptiva.media/los-salvadorenos-opinan-sobre-la-ley-de-bitcoin-aceptan-y-reciben/

[Wind_FURY]

77% of the population do not consider it to be good decision to make bitcoin a legal tender there.

That’s not good. Plus there’s Article 7 in El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law that states, “ Every economic agent must accept bitcoin as payment when offered to him by whoever acquires a good or service”.

I believe El Salvador should never force their citizens like that. Support it, and make it Legal Tender, but force it? No, that’s not what it’s supposed to be. Bitcoin should be used according to its own good, not because citizens were forced to use it.

[zanezane]

Don't think so, there's not that much developed infrastructure there that are tech related or bitcoin supportive, they might be a hub for cryptocurrency but I don't think that it's going to be a home plus having a home for bitcoin isn't ideal because it implicitly implies that it's centralized and it favors a certain country, bitcoin is for everyone regardless of borders and race.

[awik p]

77% of the population do not consider it to be good decision to make bitcoin a legal tender there.

That’s not good. Plus there’s Article 7 in El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law that states, “ Every economic agent must accept bitcoin as payment when offered to him by whoever acquires a good or service”.

I believe El Salvador should never force their citizens like that. Support it, and make it Legal Tender, but force it? No, that’s not what it’s supposed to be. Bitcoin should be used according to its own good, not because citizens were forced to use it.

Of course, the policies of the government are based on the needs of the majority of the population, and I think the pros and cons there are still there, but it seems that all the people there must comply with government regulations. and I think there will be many advantages which will become a reference for bitcoiners to stop by, so that the prosperity of the country will increase

[Slash61]

Of course, the policies of the government are based on the needs of the majority of the population, and I think the pros and cons there are still there, but it seems that all the people there must comply with government regulations. and I think there will be many advantages which will become a reference for bitcoiners to stop by, so that the prosperity of the country will increase

because it is a regulation from the government of course all the people must follow the regulation.
although later some agree or not, when the regulations are made non-binding forcibly, I don't think it will be a problem. even most think it is the best chosen by the government.

[Vishnu.Reang]

-   77% of the population do not consider it to be good decision to make bitcoin a legal tender there.
-   64% are not willing to receive their salary in bitcoins.
-   Nearly half of them do not know anything about bitcoin. 48,2% declare knowing bitcoin somewhat, and 4,9% state they know a lot about it.
-   75% have got a smartphone to connect to the internet, but 23,5% have no means to connect.
-   67,14% of the respondents that were also merchants, declare that they are not willing to receive payments in bitcoin.
-   60,7% are not in possession of a bank account, and 67,5% do not have a bank card (credit/debit).
-   95% believe that the dollar gives them financial stability (vs 1% that believe bitcoin will).
-   Only 2,5% of the respondents have experience performing crypto TXs previously.
-   40% consider the Bitcoin Law favours large companies/businessmen.
-   25,6% believe bitcoin will improve the economy, but 43,6% believe it will make it worse.
-   The more the age, the less people know about bitcoin, and the less positive they are about it.

Not surprised by the results. Here in India, if you take out a similar survey, then you will get almost identical results. The mainstream media here always paid cryptocurrency in a bad light, always linking it with criminals and drug trade. The younger generation (especially those in their 20s and 30s) is more receptive, since they are no longer dependent on the mainstream media to get the information. But the issue is that the decision makers (politicians, bureaucrats.etc) are almost entirely from the older age groups.

[777Jolami]

Of course, the policies of the government are based on the needs of the majority of the population, and I think the pros and cons there are still there, but it seems that all the people there must comply with government regulations. and I think there will be many advantages which will become a reference for bitcoiners to stop by, so that the prosperity of the country will increase

because it is a regulation from the government of course all the people must follow the regulation.
although later some agree or not, when the regulations are made non-binding forcibly, I don't think it will be a problem. even most think it is the best chosen by the government.

Surveying is not exactly the same thing as voting or bitocracy.  The government still relies on many other factors before integrating and issuing a regulation.  Regulation is an essential tool to govern the country, its citizens.  It depends on the position of each country, even China, North Korea, they are very resolute and almost imposing.

What are your thoughts? Do you think El Salvador will become the "Home of Bitcoin"?

Although El Salvado has succeeded in legal tendering and legitimizing bitcoin into their economy and regulation, they are still a small country, their appeal is still modest but  anyway I agree with the name of the homeland after what they have done.

[Wind_FURY]

77% of the population do not consider it to be good decision to make bitcoin a legal tender there.

That’s not good. Plus there’s Article 7 in El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law that states, “ Every economic agent must accept bitcoin as payment when offered to him by whoever acquires a good or service”.

I believe El Salvador should never force their citizens like that. Support it, and make it Legal Tender, but force it? No, that’s not what it’s supposed to be. Bitcoin should be used according to its own good, not because citizens were forced to use it.

Of course, the policies of the government are based on the needs of the majority of the population, and I think the pros and cons there are still there, but it seems that all the people there must comply with government regulations. and I think there will be many advantages which will become a reference for bitcoiners to stop by, so that the prosperity of the country will increase

The prosperity of a country is not assured just by forcing a country to use a technology that their people are currently NOT comfortable of adopting yet. Encourage the use of Bitcoin through giving tax breaks, but the El Salvadorian government should never force anyone to use it.

[bitterguy28]

Of course, the policies of the government are based on the needs of the majority of the population, and I think the pros and cons there are still there, but it seems that all the people there must comply with government regulations. and I think there will be many advantages which will become a reference for bitcoiners to stop by, so that the prosperity of the country will increase

because it is a regulation from the government of course all the people must follow the regulation.
although later some agree or not, when the regulations are made non-binding forcibly, I don't think it will be a problem. even most think it is the best chosen by the government.

Yeah and it will be the process in the future if the people really loves this regulation or not but for now things must be followed and they will make some actions of hates when this does not help their economy for this.

[perfect999]

El Salvador is now the first country in the world to embrace Bitcoin as legal tender. This is good news for Bitcoin and cryptocurrency in general, because it increases mainstream adoption and demand like skyrocket. China's recent crackdown on Bitcoin, could force miners to move to other countries with a friendly stance towards it. El Salvador could see an increase in miner's interest as China and other restrictive countries lose luster in the world of crypto. Of course, the impact won't be that much because El Salvador is a third-world country. Yet, it's something better than nothing.

Probably cryptocurrency businesses might be moving their companies to over there because Bitcoin was declared a legal tender. I think before any company decides to move to that place, they will have to be considering a lot of things and whether the environment and relocation to that place is going to favor them. So it’s not going to be that easy. Maybe they can just decide to open another office in that location, if they want to.

Anyways, it’s a good thing that El Salvador declared Bitcoin a legal tender. The reason why it’s not a big news in the cryptocurrency space is because it’s just a small country. But I believe this might inspire other countries that wants to do the same to go ahead with it.

[Dhoe]

El Salvador is indeed the first country in the world to accept bitcoin as a legal tender but that doesn't mean El Salvador is the home of bitcoin, maybe later there will be another country that legalizes bitcoin. Is that country also called a home for bitcoin?

it's true as you say, we shouldn't say el salvador is the home of bitcoin, maybe later other countries will legalize bitcoin, actually bitcoin doesn't have to have a house, because all of us in this forum, can be a home for bitcoin,

[cotton ball]

In my opinion, the real home of Bitcoin is from Satoshi himself. Wherever hole he was during the time he created Bitcoin, that is the “real home”. El Salvador was just making Bitcoin a legal tender, and doesn’t mean that it’s gonna be the “home of Bitcoin”.

I agree with your opinion mate, if we say el salvador is the home of bitcoin, maybe if satoshi heard about this post I'm sure he would not accept it, because el salvador has only known bitcoin in these 2 years, while bitcoin has been playing for more than 10 years , so no one will accept a small country, and new to bitcoin, making it a home for bitcoin..

[ropyu1978]

the government of el salvador has legalized bitcoin, and has made bitcoin a legal currency, we need to support the el salvador government, because when other countries reject bitcoin, el salvador actually comes and graciously accepts bitcoin, but for us to make it el salvador as the home of bitcoin, I don't think it's time yet, considering they're a small country, haven't been able to do much, let satoshi be the home for bitcoin..

[Wind_FURY]

I believe everyone should also start researching on what Singapore, or Switzerland might be planning for Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. Both of these countries are banking industry giants because of clean governance, and a network formed with other countries through Free Trade Agreements, which opens the opportunity for foreign investments.

Bitcoin is the next evolution of money. I believe the same trade agreements will be developed and implemented in both of these countries, and I believe they will be the leaders in the cryptocurrency industry. El Salvador as a country will never prosper because the government is corrupt.

[tiCeR]

I believe everyone should also start researching on what Singapore, or Switzerland might be planning for Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. Both of these countries are banking industry giants because of clean governance, and a network formed with other countries through Free Trade Agreements, which opens the opportunity for foreign investments.

Bitcoin is the next evolution of money. I believe the same trade agreements will be developed and implemented in both of these countries, and I believe they will be the leaders in the cryptocurrency industry. El Salvador as a country will never prosper because the government is corrupt.

It obviously is an evolution of money, but there is a good chance governments won't like this version. Same issue with the US, we will see how they are going to be dealing with Bitcoin once it grows even further. For now the USD is considered a global reserve currency, which makes it very comfortable for the US to just print money and buy stuff. That's what's happening all the time. But what is going to happen when Bitcoin becomes a real alternative, like so big that the US sees the urge to act against it? They won't embrace it forever I think. For now Bitcoin is still too small to threaten the reserve currency status of the USD. They could apply all kinds of shenanigans without even forbidding Bitcoin and still make it impractical to hold or use it.