El Salvador, with a population of 4.5 million adult citizens, declared $30 in Bitcoin to all adult citizens.
Last Thursday, the president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, announced that starting from September 7, the new bitcoin law will be in effect. According to the law, the digital currency will be legal tender.
Furthermore, he confirmed that there would be $30 worth of Bitcoins per adult in the country. Citizens are supposed to download the government’s official Bitcoin wallet application.
Positive Response of Crypto Community
The Crypto community has welcomed this development with a positive attitude. In the world bank data, El Salvador is registered with 6.45 million citizens. The number of adults who will receive the airdrop is not precise, though it is estimated as 4.5 million individuals.
If all citizens installed the app to reach their free Bitcoins, the Bitcoin user community would expand approximately 2.5 per cent. On the other hand, this expansion will be costly for the El Salvadoran government as they give away $100 million for the complete procedure of Bitcoins.
El Salvador launched that iconic step a couple of weeks ago. In Thursday’s press conference, president Bukele said:
The use of Bitcoin will be optional; nobody will receive Bitcoin if they don’t want it…If someone receives payment in Bitcoin, they can choose to receive it in dollars automatically.
The reason is remittance process
Despite the bold decision, the government ensures that the salaries and pensions will continue to be paid in US dollars. The president elaborates on their step concerning Bitcoin as a way to lessen the remittance process. The world bank stated that the Latin American country hosts around $6 billion annually as inward payment.
The decision of El Salvador encouraged crypto businesses to settle down in the country. Indeed, Athena Bitcoin shared that they will invest roughly $1 million to establish 1,500 Bitcoin ATMs.
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