ARGENTINA COULD BE THE 1ST COUNTRY USING BITCOIN AS OFFICIAL CURRENCY

[gtraah]

The more people that use BITCOIN the more stable it will be, ALSO when the rewards start dropping further this is another good sign, more stability.

[littlewizard]

I can forsee some very small countries will adopt Bitcoin, and slowly, bigger country will adopt it.

[maurya78]

I doubt that this kind of adoption with official sanction will happen anytime soon
Argentina is too deeply steeped in the traditional financial system for this to happen easily

[LiteCoinGuy]

http://www.coindesk.com/argentina-most-likely-adopt-bitcoin/

[Catmoonglow]

Actually, I consider it more of an opportunity for the people of Argentina. The benefit is for them, not "for Bitcoin."

[666uazan]

This would be a good time for an infographic in Spanish to circulate around Argentinian social media, maybe listing the benefits of Bitcoin.
Even a small flyer campaign; possibly throw up a site with more info/easy tutorials for the less technologically apt.

[Tenarlty]

This would be a good time for an infographic in Spanish to circulate around Argentinian social media, maybe listing the benefits of Bitcoin.
Even a small flyer campaign; possibly throw up a site with more info/easy tutorials for the less technologically apt.

The less technologically apt are also the most likely to get their bitcoins lost or stolen. Encouraging them to buy bitcoins at this stage is a great way of worsening Bitcoin's reputation.

Also, Bitcoin's volatility is not very attractive to people trying to flee an unstable currency like the Argentine peso, and yet another reason to give Bitcoin a bad name if the price tanks.

Bitcoin has to be adopted at its own pace by people who understand the risks involved. By forcing it on others you're only doing it harm in the long run.

[666uazan]

By forcing it on others you're only doing it harm in the long run.

Since when is offering people info on the benefits/risks of Bitcoin considered forcing

[Tenarlty]

By forcing it on others you're only doing it harm in the long run.

Since when is offering people info on the benefits/risks of Bitcoin considered forcing

Yeah, "forcing" was a bad word choice, sorry about that, but then again the Bitcoin community at large tends to be rather pushy, which is usually not very appreciated.

Bitcoin is not completely unknown in Argentina, and in fact has a rather large users community (compared to other countries in the region at least), some of which are very active in promoting its use. I've seen some go a bit too aggressively about it though, like giving out waiters' tips in Bitcoin paper wallets, or talking in general about it rather disingenuously, overstating its benefits and ignoring its risks. Because of that attitude people in argentina forums, as an example, are immediately dismissive of anything Bitcoin-related.

I like the idea of more widespread educational material, but I'm a bit wary of any kind of "in your face" promotional campaign.

[666uazan]

By forcing it on others you're only doing it harm in the long run.

Since when is offering people info on the benefits/risks of Bitcoin considered forcing

Yeah, "forcing" was a bad word choice, sorry about that, but then again the Bitcoin community at large tends to be rather pushy, which is usually not very appreciated.

Bitcoin is not completely unknown in Argentina, and in fact has a rather large users community (compared to other countries in the region at least), some of which are very active in promoting its use. I've seen some go a bit too aggressively about it though, like giving out waiters' tips in Bitcoin paper wallets, or talking in general about it rather disingenuously, overstating its benefits and ignoring its risks. Because of that attitude people in argentina forums, as an example, are immediately dismissive of anything Bitcoin-related.

I like the idea of more widespread educational material, but I'm a bit wary of any kind of "in your face" promotional campaign.

I think people who tip waiters (who don't know about bitcoin) in bitcoin are assholes. I also know that way too many bitcoiners gloss over the risks. What I think is beneficial is moving in the direction of making Bitcoin more user friendly via third party apps, easy to use wallets, things like Trezor; as well as easy-to-read, readily available educational materials to those who are curious/want to learn.

[annoyingorange]

The less technologically apt are also the most likely to get their bitcoins lost or stolen. Encouraging them to buy bitcoins at this stage is a great way of worsening Bitcoin's reputation.

Also, Bitcoin's volatility is not very attractive to people trying to flee an unstable currency like the Argentine peso, and yet another reason to give Bitcoin a bad name if the price tanks.

Bitcoin has to be adopted at its own pace by people who understand the risks involved. By forcing it on others you're only doing it harm in the long run.

Do you understand the current issue of hyperinflation in Argentina though? Bitcoin might not be THE solution, but only time will tell. All I know is if I was losing value on my currency every day I'd be looking for an alternative store of value (I mean to also imply commodities)

[Tenarlty]

The less technologically apt are also the most likely to get their bitcoins lost or stolen. Encouraging them to buy bitcoins at this stage is a great way of worsening Bitcoin's reputation.

Also, Bitcoin's volatility is not very attractive to people trying to flee an unstable currency like the Argentine peso, and yet another reason to give Bitcoin a bad name if the price tanks.

Bitcoin has to be adopted at its own pace by people who understand the risks involved. By forcing it on others you're only doing it harm in the long run.

Do you understand the current issue of hyperinflation in Argentina though? Bitcoin might not be THE solution, but only time will tell. All I know is if I was losing value on my currency every day I'd be looking for an alternative store of value (I mean to also imply commodities)

Agreed, but with Bitcoin's track record this year (-50%) it's looking even worse than the Argentine peso (25% annual inflation, although I guess it could go higher now). With those figures Argentines looking for a more stable store of value are far more likely to put their money in dollars, euros or gold than in Bitcoin, and understandably so.

[will_see]

Too awesome to be the truth

[annoyingorange]

Agreed, but with Bitcoin's track record this year (-50%) it's looking even worse than the Argentine peso (25% annual inflation, although I guess it could go higher now). With those figures Argentines looking for a more stable store of value are far more likely to put their money in dollars, euros or gold than in Bitcoin, and understandably so.

Down 50% from a relatively absurd plateau. Even after the crash at around $350 a btc that's up from around $97 a coin this time last year (August 2013). Considering we're now at what seems to be a relatively stable 600. If you bought when bitcoin peaked there's a good chance you'd have the same issue with any commodity or currency, not to be rude.

[sugarfree]

Agreed, but with Bitcoin's track record this year (-50%) it's looking even worse than the Argentine peso (25% annual inflation, although I guess it could go higher now). With those figures Argentines looking for a more stable store of value are far more likely to put their money in dollars, euros or gold than in Bitcoin, and understandably so.

Not only this but who is going to sell Bitcoins for Peso's which are almost certainly going to continue to lose value in the short term? Investors are already going to lock in a loss just to get their assets into currency someone would trade bitcoins for. Once they've got their holdings into a more stable currency why add additional risk in trading again for bitcoins?

[Tenarlty]

Agreed, but with Bitcoin's track record this year (-50%) it's looking even worse than the Argentine peso (25% annual inflation, although I guess it could go higher now). With those figures Argentines looking for a more stable store of value are far more likely to put their money in dollars, euros or gold than in Bitcoin, and understandably so.

Not only this but who is going to sell Bitcoins for Peso's which are almost certainly going to continue to lose value in the short term? Investors are already going to lock in a loss just to get their assets into currency someone would trade bitcoins for. Once they've got their holdings into a more stable currency why add additional risk in trading again for bitcoins?

People in this sub keep bringing that up, but that's not really an issue. Plenty of people sell BTC for pesos, including myself. Sure, pesos are worth less every day, but you underestimate how much people in Argentina need them for their day to day life. I need pesos to pay for my rent, I need pesos to buy my groceries, I need pesos to pay my taxes, etc. Whenever I get the chance I spend bitcoins, but we're far from being able to pay for everything with them. Until then, pesos are a necessary evil.

[ipnone5only]

Why would anyone sell bitcoin to buy pesos??

[CokeCoin]

The article does not properly focus on the way the US supreme Court has chosen to let financial interests go before democracy for the Argentinian people.

[CokeCoin]

No people of the world can be held responsible for paying back public debt because doing so is equivalent to slavery. Only if the people want should it pay and this will be reflected in the market interest rate for the country.

[CokeCoin]

What this case has shown is that New York and the United States deserves to be weakened as a financial center as it is not to be trusted.
Bitcoin as a transaction medium gets around the anti-democratic blockade that is designed to enslave this people.

This is the core issue and why bitcoin is such an ideal platform without the slavery imposed by the US jurisdictional control over NY banks.