Latin American Country, El Salvador becomes the first country to adopt cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, as a legal tender.
The online casino industry is continuously growing and adapting to changing industries. That same growth is also about expanding into other sectors of the industry which includes payment methods such as the Bitcoin payment method .
Cryptocurrency is on the rise and El Salvador, a country in Central America, is making waves being the first to adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender.
Cryptocurrency is more widely accepted
The new partnership between the global cryptocurrency payments technology provider, ForumPay, and the Maltese crypto exchange, ZBX is making the acceptance of crypto payments even easier.
It allows more local iGaming companies to accept crypto deposits from 250 million+ crypto wallet holders across the globe. The partnership is the first to offer fully compliant crypto payments solutions to gaming operators with MGA licensing .
It's a new day for operators and players with crypto payments being even easier than using a credit card. Players can simply scan the QR code at the cashier to deposit and play. Conversion of crypto funds to fiat is at the most competitive rate possible.
Read our Bitcoin guides for more information about the payment method and its way to the online casino industry.
El Salvador leads the way
The El Salvador government made a purchase of $20.9 million in Bitcoin before the cryptocurrency became a legal tender. President Salvador Naib Bukele says the purchase of 400 Bitcoin is the first step to introducing digital currency into the financial balance sheet.
Earlier this month, the purchased Bitcoin was exchanged for $52,643.97 . This was an increase of 1.61% on the original purchase price. The publications were released only hours before the law came into force. Today, Bitcoin is an official means of payment in the country, which makes El Salvador the first country to adopt cryptocurrency as a legal tender.
A new law has been put in place to create a $150 million fund allowing for the conversion of Bitcoin into US dollars. The government also released an application called Chivo. It's a digital wallet for Bitcoin transactions. Users can enter their ID number into the wallet and they will then receive $30 in Bitcoin.
A stumbling block
There was a slight hiccup in the planning as Bitcoin took a tumble on the first day as legal tender in El Salvador, dropping 20% at one point through the day .
According to opposition politician, Johnny Wright Sol, it was a bad day for President Bukele, the ruling government, and the overall Bitcoin experiment. Sol states that the majority of the population still knows very little about cryptocurrency. One thing that is very clear is that it is a volatile market which was evident on launch day.
Sol believes that Bitcoin is not an apt national currency, and the implementation of the Bitcoin law was rushed. Wright Sol reveals that while they are not haters of cryptocurrency or Bitcoin, they strongly believe it shouldn't be compulsory for businesses to accept it as a payment method .
Over 1,000 protestors gathered outside the supreme court against the new laws and payment method implementation. The fear is that it will cause instability in what is already one of the poorest
Latin American countries. Another fear is that it could increase or encourage illicit transactions.
Others such as a local shopkeeper, Mr Hernandez, believe that even if there is a risk, there can be great rewards. Hernandez reveals that where others see crisis, he sees opportunity.
For online casino players, this also means that there are a wide number of Curacao licensed online casinos that offer Bitcoin, allowing for quicker payments and gameplay.