By Shelly Melancon (Switzerland)
El Salvador’s Bitcoin adoption bill, passed on June 9 and scheduled to become effective by September 7, was met with wide reactions- both positive and negative- though the positive reactions overwhelmed the latter. However, it seems that the optimism that greeted the new law is about to turn sour as a new survey reveals that a large crop of El Salvadorans do not share the same optimism and interest that the majority of the crypto community has. Perhaps President Bukele may have to second guess his Bitcoin stance.
The Latin American country became part of the history of the flagship cryptocurrency as soon as it passed that law. In essence, El Salvador became the first country to push the limits on adopting Bitcoin as a legal tender. Far and wide, crypto enthusiasts hailed President Nayib Bukele’s decision, though influential bodies like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank reasoned that it was an unwise decision and denied the new law their support.
Only 20% of El Salvadorans Endorse Bitcoin Adoption, Survey Says
Findings of the new survey indicate disinterest in
the law informed by lack of understanding of what Bitcoin stands for and cryptocurrencies generally represent. Out of 1,233 respondents of the survey conducted earlier this month, only 20% endorsed the Bitcoin law. The survey was carried out by Disruptiva. Other findings revealed that 54% of the respondents regarded the Bitcoin law as ‘not at all correct.’ 24% of them considered it as ‘slightly correct.’
46% or nearly half of the survey respondents signified that they had no knowledge of Bitcoin. Those who said they couldn’t embrace the idea of getting paid in cryptocurrency accounted for 65%. Oscar Picardo, an official of the survey firm made comments on the overall findings, asserting that it was a ‘risky bet on digital transformation.’
El Salvador to Mine Bitcoin with Energy from Volcano
While El Salvador’s president looks forward to partnerships that will foster the adoption of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, he surely has a lot of convincing to embark on. To incentivize investors, the Bitcoin law cited simple conditions to be fulfilled to obtain citizenship in the country- paying just 3 BTC. Provisions of the law leaves El Salvadorans with no choice than to comply with it as it applies to all and sundry including the non crypto-savvy population. President Bukele revealed that the country will mine the asset with energy sourced from volcano wells.
To encourage compliance, El Salvador released a Bitcoin wallet (known as Chivo) in late June with the perk of a Bitcoin airdrop. President Bukele announced that every adult citizen who downloads the Chivo Bitcoin wallet will be eligible for an airdrop worth $30 in Bitcoin. While justifying reasons for the law, he said Bitcoin will reduce the country’s dependency on the US dollar which has remained its official currency for 20 years.
El Salvador may encounter challenges while trying to implement the Bitcoin law- some experts cited volatility of the crypto asset as a major challenge. Another is the staggering population of El Salvadorans who do not have access to banking services and have no inkling what Bitcoin is, much less cryptocurrency.
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