The adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender and the mining and holding of this digital asset fit with El Salvador's vision of becoming a developed country, with a high standard of living and wealth.
Adam Back, the renowned British cryptographer, cypherpunk and CEO of Blockstream, explained to the podcast host What Is Money, Robert Breedlove, the reasons why the adoption of Bitcoin by El Salvador is timely to boost the economic and technological development of this nation.
During the podcast, Back stated that Bitcoin is digital gold of our era and that could become a standard digital asset, which has the ability to lead El Salvador to become a developed country.
According to Back, through mining, investment and holding Bitcoin, El Salvador could reach wealth similar to that of European countries in the next 10 years.
Bitcoin is important for the economic development of El Salvador
El Salvador currently has enormous energy potential for Bitcoin mining. As Back pointed out, through volcanic energy, El Salvador can produce bitcoins with clean energy and lower production costs.
Currently, in alliance with the Volcano Energy company, El Salvador has become the first country in the world to install a national Bitcoin mining pool, and is also building a Crypto mining mega farm that will operate with 20.000 megawatts power plant, which will be powered entirely by renewable energy in order to mine bitcoins cheaply and sustainably.
In this regard, Back stated that the first countries to begin implementing this type of initiative will have the competitive advantage in the market. The expert explained that, unlike gold and black gold, as oil is known, Bitcoin or digital gold cannot be left to be “mined later,” since the cryptocurrency has a limited emission by default, established in its protocol, which causes the cryptocurrency to become increasingly scarce and difficult to produce.
Hence, the indecision about Bitcoin at the state level “threatens to squander the opportunity to accumulate multi-generational sovereign wealth”, Back said.
Volcano Energy, the company that collaborates with El Salvador, alluded to Adam Back's recent participation in Breedlove's podcast to highlight his role in the economic development of the nation through Bitcoin.
In addition to BTC mining, Back also highlighted El Salvador's strategy of Investing and holding BitcoinThe expert noted that this important initiative, in a decade or two, could significantly change the destiny of the country and other nations that recreate its strategy.
Mexico wants to follow El Salvador's steps towards Bitcoin
While experts believe that the chances of Mexico eventually adopting Bitcoin as legal tender are very low, Senator Indira Kempis remains firm in her vision of including Bitcoin in its current system.
Kempis is doing this through regulation and education of Mexican legislators.
In June of last year, the senator of the state of Nuevo León presented a bill to legalize Bitcoin and include cryptocurrency in the country's financial system as legal tender, as El Salvador has done. In addition, it participated in the installation of a Bitcoin ATM in the Mexican Senate, as part of a strategy to encourage lawmakers to satisfy their curiosity about cryptocurrency.
Recently, Kempis stated that although it has been a slow process, the initiative is receiving increasing attention from lawmakers. However, not all of this attention has been positive, as some lawmakers reject the idea of legalizing Bitcoin in the country.
Kempis firmly believes that Mexico could become the next Bitcoin nation in Latin America. “If El Salvador could do it, surely we can too”he declared.
Continue reading: El Salvador partners with Google to become the largest technology hub in Latin America
Main image from The Bitcoin Conf
