Bitcoin Hits 100 Million Breakthrough... Four Investment Methods According to El Salvador's President
by Koo Nari
Published 13 Mar.2024 11:07(KST)
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El Salvador, which mobilized national funds to purchase Bitcoin, is celebrating the surge in Bitcoin prices. Amid this, Nayib Bukele, the President of El Salvador, introduced four methods of investing in Bitcoin.
On the 12th (local time), President Bukele posted on his X (formerly Twitter) that besides direct Bitcoin investment, there are four additional sources of Bitcoin income: ▲passport program ▲conversion of Bitcoin to dollars ▲mining ▲government services. In December last year, El Salvador passed a law granting citizenship to foreigners who donate Bitcoin to government social and economic development projects. This is aimed at quickly attracting foreign investors to the country, exempting general citizenship requirements such as residency periods.
Last year, El Salvador invested $1 billion (approximately 1.3115 trillion KRW) through a public-private partnership to build a large-scale Bitcoin mining facility. President Bukele emphasized that converting Bitcoin to dollars activates local businesses and brings benefits such as pioneering innovative financial products like Bitcoin bonds.
Earlier, in September 2021, under President Bukele’s leadership, El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender. Since then, the government has mobilized national funds to purchase Bitcoin on a large scale. El Salvador is the only country in the world to designate Bitcoin as legal tender. For a while, the country faced a risk of default due to the decline in Bitcoin prices. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) urged El Salvador last year to withdraw Bitcoin holdings, citing concerns over financial stability. However, El Salvador’s financial authorities rebutted the IMF’s advice, stating that "it reduces dependence on the dollar and makes remittances from abroad freer."
Thanks to this steadfastness, El Salvador is celebrating as Bitcoin continues to hit new all-time highs recently. Bitcoin Treasuries, a site showing the status of Bitcoin-rich companies, reported that El Salvador currently holds 2,381 Bitcoins, valued at $169.02 million (approximately 222.1 billion KRW). The return on investment exceeds 50%.
Meanwhile, President Bukele was re-elected last month on the 4th with over 85% of the vote.
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