INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
On June 9, 2021, El Salvador became the first country to officially classify Bitcoin as a legal currency
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele had proposed to recognise the world's oldest and arguably the most popular cryptocurrency as legal
tender and the country's lawmakers agreed
Bukele said the move would make it easier for Salvadorans abroad to send money home
expected that more countries would immediately follow El Salvador's move as curiosity and interest in Bitcoin and other crypto coins like
Ethereum and Dogecoin had been rising rapidly.Status of legal tenderBut, except for El Salvador, no other country has so far given Bitcoin,
or any other cryptocurrency, the status of a legal tender
In many of these countries, like the US, Canada and India, trading in these virtual currencies is allowed
Some like China and Russia, however, are against allowing trading in cryptocurrency.One of the major reasons for yet not legalising
cryptocurrency as legal tender could be their highly volatile nature and the unpredictability of the disruption that they may cause
It could also be possible that governments around the world may be waiting for the underlying blockchain technology to mature before giving
a sovereign backing to this form of currency.VolatilityLegalising Bitcoin as legal tender will mean businesses must accept Bitcoin as a
Bitcoin, a computer-generated digital asset created through a process called "mining", has seen large fluctuations in value over the years
In April, it had reached its life-time high value around $65,000 (around Rs 48 lakh at the current exchange rate)
But lost the gains in a market crash the next month
Since then it has recovered but not enough to reach the peak yet.Huge potential?Still, many corporations, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk, see
a huge potential in cryptocurrency
Some businesses like restaurant chains, delivery services and online stores have begun accepting payments in Bitcoin
Musk once said he sees cryptocurrency as a future currency of the Earth
In spite of that, his electrical vehicle-making company has reversed its decision to accept payment in Bitcoin.There are more people
invested or trading in cryptocurrency today than ever before
According to market research firm Finder, the top five countries with the largest ownership of cryptocurrency are in Asia, and 30 per cent
of people polled in India said they held cryptocurrency.
