Bitcoin surged for the third day in a row after El Salvador President stated that the country’s bitcoin legal tender will be implemented officially on September 7th. Moreover, the government will gift every citizen $30 equivalent in bitcoins via an e-wallet if the citizens install “Chivo Wallet”.
The “Chivo Wallet,” as the government named it, is an electronic wallet that will allow users to receive bitcoins and dollars, as well as make payments, transfers, and conversions between the two currencies, all in real-time. It will be accessible for download on a variety of platforms, notably Android and iPhone phones.
It simply requires users to be linked to a network to operate it, even if it does not consume internet bandwidth, President Bukele promised that as a State, he will “ensure” a better connection throughout the country.
To gain access, users will need a Unique Identity Document (DUI) number and phone number, as well as facial recognition or call center registration. The user will receive $ 30 in bitcoin upon logging in.
The app will have two accounts: one in dollars and the other in bitcoin; the $ 30 incentive, for example, will be in bitcoin but can be converted to dollars.
President Bukele explained, “Miguel will be able to pay his bill in bitcoin but Roberto, who sold it to him, will be able to receive it in dollars.”
Previously, the president stated that they will entrust the conversions to the Development Bank of El Salvador, beginning with a sum of $ 130 million.
This amount will come from a loan that the country will seek from international organizations, such as the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), which is the only one to support the Salvadoran measure of adopting Bitcoin as legal tender, despite the fact that it has been denominated as a less transparent and environmentally harmful option.
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On the national network yesterday, President Nayib Bukele stated that utilizing Bitcoin as legal cash “would be voluntary.” However, his assertions contradict his own law as article 7 of the Bitcoin Law specifically stipulates, “Every economic agent must accept bitcoin as a form of payment when it is provided to him by whoever acquires an item or service.”
Nevertheless, According to the president, articles 8 and 12 of the law avoid the obligation to accept Bitcoin, but section 12 only excludes those who do not have access to the technologies to make transactions in Bitcoin.
This is Bukele’s first presentation to Salvadorans regarding the law, which was passed by the Legislative Assembly on June 9. He stated that many people have misread his statements and that he understands people’s concerns, but that the dollar would not be replaced by Bitcoin, as the colon was when the dollar was first introduced in 2001.
