Key Takeaways:
- El Salvador plans to create the world’s first bitcoin city, said President Nayib Bukele
- The grand project will initially be funded by bitcoin bonds and powered by a volcano
El Salvador to Build a Bitcoin City Running on Volcano Energy
El Salvador plans to create the world’s first “Bitcoin City”. It will be mostly financed by an issue of $1 billion in bonds backed by bitcoin. Also, the entire city is expected to be powered by a volcano. The extraordinary and highly-ambitious project was revealed by President Nayib Bukele at the closing of the Bitcoin-focused conference in El Salvador.
In more detail, the bitcoin city would have no capital tax gains, no income tax and also no property tax. It will offer infrastructure that would be funded by a sales tax and the selling of bitcoin bonds for cash. Half of the bonds will be converted to bitcoin ready for spending.
The other half would be used to buy US dollars to pay for city expenses and mining costs. Presently, both forms of money, bitcoin and US dollars, are legal tenders in El Salvador. In other words, you can use both to pay for anything.
“Invest Here and Make All the Money You Want,” Says Bukele
In efforts to attract foreign investors to the Bitcoin city, President Bukele linked it to the cities founded by Alexander the Great. “If you want bitcoin to spread over the world, we should build some Alexandrias, right?”
“Invest here and make all the money you want,” said Mr. Bukele, wearing his signature backwards baseball cap. “This is a fully ecological city that works and is energized by a volcano.”
In September, El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt bitcoin as a legal currency next to the US dollar.
The move brought increased attention to the small country in Latin America. To step up adoption, President Bukele offered a $30 incentive to citizens who downloaded the government’s e-wallet Chivo – slang for cool.
Mainstream Adoption Continues to Grow
El Salvador’s bitcoin adoption continues to catch the eye of traders, large-scale institutions, banks, and governments around the world. Also, more countries are lined up and weighing the prospects of accepting bitcoin as legal payment.
As a result, analysts point mainstream adoption is growing rapidly. To this end, be sure to check our bitcoin buying guide so you won’t be left out of the rally.