About 14 bitcoin service providers gathered at La Casa del Bitcoin, located in San Benito, to celebrate the first anniversary of the approval of the Bitcoin Law in El Salvador by the Legislative Assembly.
One year after having legislation that promotes the use of a crypto-asset as legal tender, the digital economy ecosystem has gained strength and has given way to new investments and job creation.
Will Hernández, director for Latin America of Paxful, a platform for peer to peer transactions with bitcoin, highlighted that the law has allowed financial inclusion and opportunities for new entrepreneurs.
“With our operations we have generated 25 direct jobs and 400 indirect jobs. In addition, we have opened a bitcoin education space called the Bitcoin House, where we have received more than 1,000 people,” said Hernandez.
For his part, Guillermo Contreras, CEO of Ditobanx, the first national fintech to receive certification from the Central Reserve Bank (BCR) as a bitcoin service provider, said that his company has generated 16 direct jobs, 6 new products and 360% growth as a result of the approval of the regulation.
“Eight months after being enabled by the law, today we serve more than 150 franchises with our bitcoin payment gateway. And now we will offer credits in a non-traditional and accessible way to small businesses,” added Contreras.
Likewise, Darvin Otero, from Nortech Labs, another Salvadoran company, said that before the law they already existed as a company, but the initiative allowed them to grow and now they help other companies to connect with bitcoin.
From the governmental point of view, Monica Taher, director of technological and international economic affairs of the Secretariat of Trade and Investment, stressed that after the Bitcoin Law, about 50 companies with crypto operations have been installed in the country, and there are many others showing interest.
“With the Law we have had an avalanche of companies that have settled in the country and others looking to start bets. Foreign investors want to start tokenization projects and other blockchain applications,” he said.
As in every birthday, the celebration cake in the shape of bitcoin could not be missing. A symbol that opens the door to many business opportunities and financial inclusion for Salvadorans.
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