El Salvador has purchased 400 bitcoin — roughly $20.9 million — one day before the cryptocurrency is adopted as a legal currency.
El Salvador passed a law in June adopting bitcoin as legal tender, making it the first country to do so. One the eve of the law going into effect, the country has purchased 400 bitcoin.
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele announced the purchase on Twitter.
El Salvador has gone down in the history books, being the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender.
Bitcoin is the most valuable, and most well-known, cryptocurrency, hitting a record price of $64,829.14 in April. As its value has soared, so has its mainstream acceptance, with financial companies and businesses alike moving to adopt it.
El Salvador, however, has become the first country to adopt it as legal tender, with the Bitcoin Law passing the Salvadoran Congress with supermajority support. Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele announced the law’s passage on Twitter.
The #BitcoinLaw has been approved by a supermajority in the Salvadoran Congress.
62 out of 84 votes!
History! #Btc🇸🇻
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) June 9, 2021
There’s still many details to be worked out, especially given Bitcoin’s volatility. But the law promises to “promote the necessary training and mechanisms so that the population can access bitcoin transactions.”