Bitcoin, ETH and Elrond (eGLD), future legal currencies in Panama

By: Bharggavi Ssayee

September 12, 2021 8:50 AM

A bill in Panama wants to allow the use of several cryptocurrencies across the country. 5 actfs are offered among which bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), elrond (EGLD), tether (USDT) and more surprisingly, an unknown to the battalion the Zeven Utility Token (7UT).

Panama turns to cryptos

This Monday, September 6, 2021, the independent deputy and member of the Panamanian Congress, Gabriel Silva presented a bill (Fully available on Google Drive) aimed at making Panama "a country compatible with the digital economy, blockchain, cryptocurrencies and the Internet ”.

The politician broke the news on his Twitter account a few hours later:

“Today we present to you the Crypto Law. […] It has the potential to create thousands of jobs, attract investment and make government more transparent ”

says Gabriel Silva on Twitter

We had already told you about this dear Gabriel Silva in a previous article. The laser-eyed MP (symbolic embodiment of all his support for bitcoin) is therefore driving the point home with a concrete proposal.

The interested party proposes in particular that cryptocurrencies be used everywhere as a means of payment in Panama. But more surprisingly, he also projects that the citizens of Panama can pay their taxes with it.

Extract from the bill (Fully available on Google Drive)

The bill mentions a total of 5 cryptocurrencies. If the presence of Bitcoin, Ethereum or the USDT benchmark stablecoin will not surprise anyone, we will more surprisingly note the presence of the eGLD of the Elrond Network project, and especially that of the obscure token 7UT. This asset, evolving in the form of an Ethereum ERC-20 token, is a real unknown to the marketcap. Associated with an initiative presented as “green” and with the HYT wallet, only a (very limited) trace can be found on Etherscan, which should, beyond the context, encourage the greatest caution.

News already relayed (and distorted)

It didn't take long for the news to spread, especially on Twitter, with some announcing sometimes bluntly that Panama would now accept bitcoin. Unfortunately, for the moment, and interesting and novel as it is, the initiative is no more than a simple bill.

We thus find some crypto-enthusiasts commenting:

“Panama has just unveiled the draft of its new cryptocurrency law. The best: - legal tender including to pay taxes - legal framework for exchanges, DEX, ICO, NFT, mining - not only btc but also ethereum »

Unlike El Salvador, it should be noted that Panama would not require businesses to accept bitcoin (BTC) or any other cryptocurrency as a means of payment. It would simply be a question of being able to offer them in a supervised manner.

"Provide legal, regulatory and fiscal security for the use, possession and issuance of digital securities and cryptocurrencies within the Republic of Panama"

details the bill ...

Currently, cryptocurrencies are not prohibited in Panama. Indeed, the country's constitution does not allow the government to impose a national currency. Since 1904, Panama has nevertheless adopted the US dollar as its common currency. The balboa, a local dollar-backed currency, also circulates in the country.

Even if this legislative approach is unlikely to succeed, it is still very stimulating to see politicians publicly supporting cryptocurrencies. Considering that we are still at the dawn of their democratization. It remains to be seen what will be the reaction of the Panamanian Congress to this vote? Last week, Honduras installed its first Bitcoin vending machines, will Panama join them?