El Salvador Adds New Citizenship Laws for Bitcoin Investors
El Salvador has recently updated its Bitcoin donations program for investors applying for citizenship in the region. The Bitcoin VISA program was introduced last month that allowed investors to purchase citizenship in the country in exchange for $1 million in Bitcoin investments or equivalent in USDT.
However, recently the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador has added amendments to its migration laws. The regulatory changes will expedite the process of acquiring citizenship for foreigners who want to invest in the social and economic development program of the Central American nation.
The new program was introduced by legislators on 21st December with support from new political party founded by former president Nayib Bukele. This law is set to go into effect in upcoming days. Bukele who is the driving force behind the Bitcoin adoption program of the nation has recently stepped down from his position.
He is currently preparing for the upcoming presidential elections set to take place on 24th February, 2024. He introduced Bitcoin as legal tender in the region and set up the National Bitcoin Office.
Former Salvador President Introduces Bitcoin Residency Bill
Former President Nayib Bukele told the media that the Bitcoin residency bill holds vital interest. At the same time, he retained that developers from foreign regions are working on Bitcoin-based projects. He noted that Bitcoin projects are aimed towards economic, social, and cultural development as per the bill.
The media reported that the government did not impose a minimum donation threshold on Bitcoin donations. The regulatory changes were introduced after two weeks of the Bitcoin Freedom VISA program. In addition to El Salvador other Latin American nations and states are also invested in Bitcoin as a hedge against inflation.
As per Chainalysis 2023 crypto adoption index India, Nigeria, Vietnam, the United States, and Ukraine are top 5 ranked nations. The firm has shared a top 20 nation list based on the highest amount of digital currency investments including Brazil, Bangladesh, Canada, Japan, United Kingdom, and China.
A prominent Latin American nation with the highest rate of Bitcoin trading volume is Cuba. Fronte, a local Bitcoin organization hailing from the region noted that investors from the region are investing in digital currencies to prevent devaluation of their savings on account of record inflation levels.
Crypto Investors from Argentina to Challenge FATF Travel Rule
Argentina one of the top Latin American economies elected a new president Javier Milei on 10th December, 2023. Milei talked about introducing radical policies geared towards the development of the nation such as dollarization and reforming Banco Central de La Republica Argentina (BCRA).
He is also regarded as a blockchain sector-friendly candidate but did not add any promises to introduce crypto-favoring regulations during his election campaign. However, the voters of the presidential elect deem that he will introduce regulatory digital asset reforms in Argentina like his counterpart in Salvador.
On this account, non-government firm Bitcoin Argentina has asked Milei to safeguard the privacy of investors from the nation. Furthermore, the firm also asked the president to refrain from including FATF’s Travel Rule.
However, local Bitcoin advocate Fernando Nikllic noted that Bitcoin investors should take a page from the official campaign of Milei that does not include any promises for introducing crypto-friendly policies. Nevertheless, the local blockchain industry anticipates the new president to implement favorable policies in addition to quoted radical monetary reforms.
