Bitcoin Will Be Legal Currency of 2 More Nations in 2022, El Salvador President Nayib Bukele Predicts

Nayib Bukele has listed six predictions for Bitcoin in 2022, including a “big surprise” at the Bitcoin Conference to be hosted in Miami in April.

By Radhika Parashar | Updated: 3 January 2022 14:00 IST

Bitcoin Will Be Legal Currency of 2 More Nations in 2022, El Salvador President Nayib Bukele Predicts

Photo Credit: Facebook/ Nayib Bukele

Nayib Bukele declared Bitcoin as a legal currency in El Salvador in September 2021

Highlights

Bukele predicts Bitcoin price will reach $100,000 (roughly Rs. 74 lakh)
Construction work on Bitcoin City in El Salvador to 'begin soon'
No other country has confirmed consideration of legalising Bitcoin

Nayib Bukele, the President of the Central American country of El Salvador, is a Bitcoin supporter who legalised the cryptocurrency in the country last year. Stepping into the year 2022, Bukele has now shared his six predictions around Bitcoin's journey. As per the Salvadoran president, not only will Bitcoin price reach $100,000 (roughly Rs. 74 lakh) per token this year, the crypto asset will also be adopted as legal tender by two more countries.

Bukele posted his list of predictions regarding Bitcoin's growth on Twitter, saying that the oldest cryptocurrency in the world will emerge as a major electoral issue in the US this year.

In addition, the 40-year-old pro-crypto politician said the construction work on his “Bitcoin City” project will also start this year. Bukele aims to set up a Bitcoin-powered city in the eastern region of La Union that will get its energy from a volcano and not levy any taxes except for value added tax (VAT) on the residents.

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2022 predictions on #Bitcoin:

•Will reach $100k
•2 more countries will adopt it as legal tender
•Will become a major electoral issue in US elections this year
•Bitcoin City will commence construction
•Volcano bonds will be oversubscribed
•Huge surprise at @TheBitcoinConf
— Nayib Bukele :flag-sv: (@nayibbukele) January 2, 2022

After El Salvador approved Bitcoin as legal tender in September 2021, several influential individuals as well as financial institutions raised concerns about the decision.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF), for instance, warned El Salvador to stop using Bitcoin as legal tender given its high price volatility and linked risks to factors like consumer protection, financial integrity, and financial stability.

In December 2021, Andrew Bailey, the governor of Bank of England (BoE) expressed concerns for the citizens of El Salvador, questioning if Salvadorans were even aware of the risks they have exposed their finances to.

Despite these concerns, Bukele has continued to remain a Bitcoin supporter.

In fact, just before the year of 2021 wrapped up, the Salvadoran president predicted the end of fiat currencies altogether in the near future, owing to the increased popularity of Bitcoin.

What has been called by international organizations as “The #Bitcoin Experiment”, is nothing more than the world watching how mass adoption changes a country's economy.

If it's for the good, it's game over for FIAT.

El Salvador is the spark that ignites the real revolution.
— Nayib Bukele :flag-sv: (@nayibbukele) December 23, 2021

Currently, Bitcoin price is around $46,939 (roughly Rs. 34.92 lakh) on international exchanges.

As of now, no other country has officially confirmed that it is considering the adoption of Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrencies as legal tender.

Interested in cryptocurrency? We discuss all things crypto with WazirX CEO Nischal Shetty and WeekendInvesting founder Alok Jain on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Further reading: Bitcoin, Nayib Bukele, El Salvador, Cryptocurrency

Radhika Parashar

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Radhika Parashar is a senior correspondent for Gadgets 360. She has been reporting on tech and telecom for the last three years now and will be focussing on writing about all things crypto. Besides this, she is a major sitcom nerd and often replies in Chandler Bing and Michael Scott references. For tips or queries you could reach out to her at RadhikaP@ndtv.com. More