Central Bank of Bahrain Gears to Put BTC Payment Processing on Trials Via OpenNode

Bahrain is taking up the trails of this BTC payment processing solution as part of its attempts to grow its digital economy in a regulated space.

Written by Radhika Parashar, Edited by Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 15 September 2022 13:44 IST

Central Bank of Bahrain Gears to Put BTC Payment Processing on Trials Via OpenNode

Photo Credit: Unsplash/ Kanchanara

Bahrain is looking to adopt futuristic fintech solutions including cryptocurrency

Highlights

UAE is expanding its horizons in fintech
Bitcoin is not yet a legal tender in the UAE
BTC is currently trading at the price point of $20,000

Regions across the UAE are experimenting with the Web3 space, intending to establish the country among earlier adopters of the technology. The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) is teaming up with OpenNode BTC payment processor to try out a payment solution dedicated to BTC transactions. OpenNode is authorised by the CBB to help fintech firms in the UAE test their ideas and solutions in the nation. Bahrain is taking up the trails of this BTC payment processing solution as part of its attempts to grow its digital economy in a regulated space.

Bitcoin payments had been non-existent in the island nation until now, but the interest in this digital asset seems to be growing throughout the Middle East.

"This is a watershed moment for the people of Bahrain, the Middle East and the Bitcoin economy as a whole,” said Afnan Rahman, CEO and Co-Founder at OpenNode, that provides ‘Bitcoin-as-a-payment-network' infrastructure services in over 160 countries.

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The company intends to drive the adoption of the BTC as a transaction service on the lightning network.

“As a country, we have always been ahead of the curve in adopting fintech solutions thanks to our regulator's flexibility and forward thinking. "We are proud to have worked with the Central Bank towards establishing a strong financial services ecosystem within the Kingdom of Bahrain,” said Dalal Buhejji, Executive Director - Investment Development for Financial Services at the Bahrain Economic Development Board

Currently, BTC is trading at the price point of $20,000 (roughly Rs. 16 lakh) as per Gadgets 360's crypto price tracker.

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El Salvador, last year in September, became the first country in the world to legalise BTC as a payment alternative.

Back in March, the Portsmouth city in the New Hampshire state of the US decided to allow its residents to pay electricity bills via Bitcoins

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Further reading: Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, CBB, Web3, OpenNode, Bahrain

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