Amid El Salvador reporting on cases of the positive impact of the country’s Bitcoin (BTC) adoption, a government official in Mexico has once again urged that the country should follow El Salvador’s example on Bitcoin. Indira Kempis, a senator representing Nuevo León state, is confident that Bitcoin should be legal tender in Mexico because Bitcoin adoption can potentially drive global financial inclusion. The senator is now developing a cryptocurrency bill based on El Salvador’s “Bitcoin Law.” She expects to introduce the bill to the Mexican Congress this year, Kempis said in an interview with El Salvador In English publication after …

El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender in September 2021 has triggered a notable surge not only for its gross domestic product but also for the local tourism development. According to El Salvador’s tourism minister Morena Valdez, the tourism industry in El Salvador surged more than 30% since the adoption of the Bitcoin law in September 2021. “We did a poll to check the activity according to the before and after of Bitcoin. The tourism sector increased in November and December. This increased by more than 30%,” Valdez said in an interview with the local news agency El …

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele wants to offer citizenship to those who invest in the small Central American nation. President Bukele took to Twitter to inform the crypto community on Sunday that he was sending a list of 52 legal reforms to Congress. Among the most notable proposals, Bukele called for the removal of red tape, reducing bureaucracy, creating tax incentives and most importantly offering citizenships to foreigners looking to invest in the nation. I’m sending 52 legal reforms to congress, to remove red tape, reduce bureaucracy, create tax incentives, citizenship in exchange for investments, new securities laws, stability contracts, …

Global cryptocurrency enthusiasts have expressed concerns over Canadian authorities freezing bank accounts and crypto wallets involved in funding local COVID-19 protests. On Thursday, Ontario Superior Court Justice Calum MacLeod issued an order freezing all the digital assets and bank accounts associated with “Freedom Convoy,” or a series of the ongoing protests against COVID-19 vaccine mandates and restrictions. According to a report by The Toronto Star, the amount of funds frozen so far on bank accounts and digital wallets with Bitcoin (BTC) and other assets is estimated at more than $1 million. “The names of both individuals and entities as well …

A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation in the U.S. Senate which seeks to mitigate perceived risks posed by El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin as a legal currency. The proposed Accountability for Cryptocurrency in El Salvador Act (ACES) aims to “mitigate potential risks to the U.S. financial system” such as money laundering and terrorism funding. The bill was introduced by Republican Senators Jim Risch and Bill Cassidy with Democratic Senator Bob Menendez signing on. Senator Risch wrote in the Feb. 16 announcement that: “El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender raises significant concerns about the economic stability and financial …

Last year, El Salvador dominated headlines as the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender. The move is controversial both in and outside of the country, heralded for its potential to bring financial services to large portions of El Salvador’s unbanked population and criticized for its top-down implementation. This has created a sense of uncertainty and made some Salvadorans feel they lacked a choice, despite locations like El Zonte already accepting Bitcoin (BTC) as payment through organic developments that predate the law. These arguments, while for and against the law, don’t actually exist in contradiction to one another. While …

Bitso, a major Latin American cryptocurrency exchange and El Salvador’s crypto wallet assistant firm, has announced its formal launch in Colombia. As part of Bitso’s development strategy in Colombia, the exchange has hired former Mastercard executive Emilio Pardo as new country manager, the firm announced to Cointelegraph on Thursday. Pardo is former head of business development for the Andean Region at Mastercard, where he focused on fintech issues like instant and cross-border financial transactions and open banking. He will now be responsible for developing Bitso’s strategy in Colombia to increase the local crypto adoption and financial inclusion, focusing on Bitso’s …

El Salvador, the first nation to adopt Bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender, has recently announced the relaunch of its wallet app Chivo, which is supposed to patch the previous version’s stability and scalability issues. The update is welcomed news for the Central American country’s crypto experiment, which faced some hurdles and harsh criticism over the last few months. While much of the observers’ attention has been focused on aspects such as retail adoption of crypto and geopolitical implications of Bitcoin’s legal status in El Salvador, the progress of the nation’s mining industry toward achieving President Bukele’s moonshot vision has been …

An organization that supports communities in times of need employs the helping hands of crypto to open the doors for a “broader swath of philanthropists.” Powered by charity provider The Giving Block, Corazón Latino is set to accept Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Dogecoin (DOGE), and many other cryptocurrencies to help its goals of reconnecting communities with the environment and providing quick responses to places affected by disasters like the COVID-19 pandemic. The nonprofit consistently runs initiatives focused on eco-tourism, conservation and climate resilience. Apart from these, Felipe Benitez, the founder and executive director of Corazón Latino, says that the organization …

El Salvador faces another whipping from a traditional finance firm for its "forbidden" love for Bitcoin (BTC). American credit rating agency Fitch Ratings lowered El Salvador’s long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) from B- to CCC, mentioning “policy unpredictability” and the “adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender” as some of the factors that led to the downgrade. Apart from these, the statistical rating organization explained that reliance on short-term debt, an $800 million Eurobond payment due in January 2023, and a high fiscal deficit gets in the way of a better rating for the country. Additionally, El Salvador’s increased short-term debt …

Following an exponential climb in capacity over 2022, the Bitcoin (BTC) Lightning Network made a lackluster start to the new year. According to a report by Arcane Research, growth in the Lightning Network capacity, or the number of BTC locked up in channels, has stuttered. The Lightning Network surged from 1,000 to 3,000 BTC in just 8 months in 2021, striking the 3,000 BTC mark in mid-October. While the network continues to strike all-time highs, growth grinds down. The total BTC locked in the network is peaking just shy of the 3,500 BTC mark, sparking debate and discussion on social …

Major peer-to-peer (P2P) Bitcoin (BTC) platform Paxful is working to help Salvadorans better use BTC as the cryptocurrency became legal tender in El Salvador last year. Paxful on Wednesday announced the launch of “La Casa Del Bitcoin,” a new educational and training center in El Salvador to enable free learning opportunities related to BTC. https://t.co/qSPHy997JJ — Paxful (@paxful) February 2, 2022 As part of the effort, Paxful will hold educational workshops and talks focused on Bitcoin and financial inclusion in the country. The center will focus on growing awareness around the benefits of buying and selling BTC as a means …