Today, U.S. senators introduced legislation that required the State Department write a report about El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law. Also, it must develop a plan for “mitigating potential risks to the U.S. Financial System.”
Jim Risch (R–Idaho), Bob Menendez, D-N.J., ranking member and chairman, Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Bill Cassidy, R–La., introduced today the Accountability For Cryptocurrency In El Salvador (ACES Act). ).
The senators stated that El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law “raises serious concerns”. If the bill is passed, their legislation will give the State Department 60 days for a report on the adoption of Bitcoin in Central America.
El Salvador is home to Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency market capital. It is a small, poor country in Central America. Nayib Bukele (the nation’s eccentric, young president), proposed the law last September. It was passed on September.
If they are able to do so, the law mandates that businesses accept Bitcoin payments. Chivo, a wallet that the government offers citizens, is free to use and allows citizens to start with $30 worth of cryptocurrency.
Risch stated in a statement Wednesday that El Salvador’s adoption Bitcoin as a legal tender raises serious concerns about the economic stability of Central America’s vulnerable trading partner. He stated that the new policy could weaken U.S. sanctions policies and empower malign actors such as China and organized crime organizations.
Risch stated that “Our bipartisan legislation seeks to clarify El Salvador’s policies and requires the administration mitigate potential risk to U.S. finances system.”
On Twitter, President Bukele called the lawmakers “boomers” He wrote, “We aren’t your colony or your back yard.” Stay out of our internal affairs. You can’t control what you don’t have control of.
The World Bank and the IMF have all criticized the Bitcoin Law. JP Morgan has also criticized the Bitcoin Law. Last month, El Salvador asked the IMF to repeal the Bitcoin Law.
The country’s citizens have protested against its law–and what they perceive as an increasingly authoritarian state–several time (but according polls, the president remains largely popular with residents).
President Nayib Bukele tweets about when he buys Bitcoin. claims that he does this on his phone, naked.
Decryptwent on November trip to El Salvador, where major merchants such as McDonald’s and Starbucks accepted the cryptocurrency. However, many people are still confused about it.
