After the historic policy decision to adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender, El Salvador is now acquiring a taste for the digital coin as an instrument of speculation. People from all walks of life have started trading Bitcoin on the Chivo wallet that also comes with an offer of Bitcoin worth $30 for users. The primary objective of Chivo is to make transactions between businesses and users happen seamlessly. But, it is now being extensively used to facilitate the use of Bitcoin as an instrument of speculation.
It is important to note that Bitcoin has now overcome the initial wave of resistance from the public of El Salvador, with the large retail chain businesses, including the likes of McDonald’s, Starbucks, and other supermarkets accepting cryptocurrency as a legitimate method of payment. In fact, some smaller businesses have also started accepting Bitcoin. They make money by accepting the digital coin when its price is low and then converting it into the dollar once the price rises.
In terms of wider implications, this policy decision by the Republic of El Salvador might spark wider adoption of the digital currency in other countries. El Salvador has already started to realize the tangible benefits of adopting cryptocurrency. If the country continues to enjoy the benefits in the future, it will have a positive impact on the economy. This positive impact could encourage other countries to take a plunge into the crypto domain and start accepting Bitcoin and other digital currencies as legitimate payment methods in their own respective territories.
It will be interesting to witness whether El Salvador can sustain the tangible benefits of adopting cryptocurrencies in the long run and how this would impact the adoption potential of digital currencies at the level of policymakers and regulators.