0 sats \ 1 reply \ @doofus 16 Feb \ on: I'm at a beach bar in El Salvador rn, here are my 'notes from the underground' bitcoin
While it's true that adoption is still low, I believe there are a few factors that could contribute to its future growth. Firstly, the government's decision to make Bitcoin legal tender could provide a significant boost to adoption, as more businesses and individuals are likely to start using it in everyday transactions. Secondly, the increasing popularity of cryptocurrency around the world could also lead to more people in El Salvador becoming interested in using Bitcoin. The development of more user-friendly Bitcoin wallets and payment systems could make it easier for people to use Bitcoin, which could further accelerate adoption. I'm cautiously optimistic about the future of Bitcoin in El Salvador, and I believe it has the potential to play a significant role in the country's economy.
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4 sats \ 0 replies \ @CasaSatoshi OP 16 Feb
While I wish you were right, but this isn't my experience on the ground.
  1. The government made the decision a good 2-3 years ago. The 'boost' already happened. It had little to no impact. It's not new in El Salvador anymore, and most locals still don't care.
  2. a tiny minority of Salvadorans pay attention to or care about what's happening 'around the world'. The vast majority have no interest in what the world thinks about 'cryptocurrency'. I'm saying this based on conversations I've had with locals, in multiple states - coastal, internal, urban and rural.
  3. not a single human in el Salvador, foreign or local, has mentioned UX/UI or 'confusing tech' as a reason for not using it. They simply don't see a need for it, outside of cheap remittances. The economy is dollarized - This isn't Argentina, Lebanon or Venezuela.
I'm short, the problem is that most people don't see a problem, they have dollars and are happy with them. The issues of diminishing purchasing power, corrupted money, inflation etc are all a long way from the average Salvadoran's mind. Until that changes, which I don't believe it will any time soon, Bitcoin will remain a folly, accepted by a tiny handful of businesses, providing 'Bitcoin Disneyland' to wishful gueros (like me) who are looking to spend their Bitcoin in order to confirm their motivated reasoning.
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