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Several hours ago, a historic Twitter Spaces call (a new collaboration tool on Twitter) took place including some of the most involved and prominent members of the Bitcoin community as well as the CEO of Twitter Jack Dorsey and several members of the El Salvadorian Government, including President Nayib Bukele himself. At its peak, the call had around 22,000 people joined in.
History for Bitcoin
The Twitter Spaces call was originally organized via Nic Carter when he "was bored making dinner" as he confirmed in a tweet. After that, many members of the Bitcoin community joined in without the expectation of any major appearances. The group was surprised to find that Nayib Bukele had actually entered the call and was listening in to the conversation. Shortly thereafter, Nic made him a speaker and the El Salvador President was interviewed about some questions regarding the Bitcoin vote, his expectations for the country adopting Bitcoin, and future plans or obstacles that could take place as El Salvador continues down this path.
President Bukele described different parts of the bill and how El Salvador was planning on making Bitcoin legal tender and a country-wide utilizable currency. Several articles were outlined in the physical bill that was sent to the congress of El Salvador, including historic elements that could establish the guidelines for other nations to follow in the same footsteps.
Examples of these articles include exchanges in Bitcoin not being subject to a capital gains tax, putting Bitcoin on the same level as other legal tender currencies, requiring each economic agent within the country of El Salvador to accept Bitcoin as a form of payment, and also confirming that the State will provide the means for any citizens to convert their Bitcoin to US Dollars if they choose while also providing training and infrastructure to make Bitcoin as accessible as possible.
The full articles in the bill can be seen in the pictures below:
On the call, President Bukele addressed some key parts of the bill, most notably the requirement for all entities in El Salvador to accept Bitcoin. While some in the Bitcoin community acknowledged that no one should be forced to accept Bitcoin, El Salvador has addressed this problem by creating the means to eliminate the risk of volatility for any merchants or persons not willing or wanting to accept it. This is possible through a trust fund system run outside of the normal banking systems. This trust fund will be used to cover the volatility in price of Bitcoin for normal transaction by guaranteeing the price will remain stagnant and reliable for merchants. Additionally, in an effort to help reduce the current 70% of El Salvadorians who do not have a bank account or financial tools, President Bukele will be utilizing Jack Maller's Strike technology to create a Bitcoin wallet for all citizens of the country.
For example, if someone goes to a local shop and buys $5 worth of Apples in Bitcoin, but the price of Bitcoin goes down after that transaction, El Salvador will guarantee that merchant keep the full $5 worth in that sale by covering the rest with the trust fund. This would work both ways as described by President Bukele. The trust fund may lose or gain money over time as the price of Bitcoin fluctuates. Nevertheless, this system would solve the issue of requiring everyone to accept Bitcoin, even those who do not want to due to the volatility in price. President Bukele confirmed last night on the call that this fund will build up to $150 million USD worth of Bitcoin over time to support this system.
The magnitude of the legislation cannot be understated considering adding to the legitimacy of Bitcoin on a global level. Since the announcement of this bill, 7 additional countries now have support in their government in some degree. These 7 other nations are currently Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, and Colombia. In a historical recording of this event, it has actually been written into the blockchain of Bitcoin forever, as seen below:
The vote itself passed while the call was still active, adding the historical significance of the event. The vote was confirmed by members of the government that the bill passed with a supermajority of 62 out of 84 possible votes, making El Salvador the new leader in global Bitcoin adoption thus far. The country of El Salvador will continue to move forward with the Bitcoin community as the country continues on a goal to provide accessible financial tools to all of its citizens.
Closing
From a historical standpoint, this feels like it could be the first domino to fall in terms of global Bitcoin adoption and utilization. The interest of 7 other nations already looking to follow in El Salvador's footsteps cannot be understated. Right now, it appears that the first stepping stones toward removing any lingering speculation about the longevity of Bitcoin can finally start to be put to rest. With a successful model of adoption created in El Salvador, that will provide the concrete example of what Bitcoin can provide to the people of the world.
If you are interested in listening in the the conversation that took place, check out the video embedded below:
