El Salvador, the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, has been in the midst of a struggle against gang violence since March. In response to these challenges, the crypto industry has offered help in several ways, with Binance pledging to create jobs for the country’s youth.
Binance Expands Staff In El Salvador With Promise Of Creating More Jobs
Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, popularly known as CZ in the crypto space, today tweeted that the firm now has 21 staff in El Salvador. The tweet confirms that the firm had not forgotten its commitment to creating jobs for the youth in the Central American country as a long-term approach to solving gang violence. When CZ promised to create jobs for the youth in April, the leading crypto exchange only had a staff of 7 people in the country.
“We Binance took a different approach to help with the gang issues in El Salvador. Create jobs for the youth. Last 2 weeks, we have hired 7 staff, + offers for 13, and 50+ more openings, and hopefully get a few hundred before year-end. Long-term solution. Crypto creates jobs.”
Since March, El Salvador has focused on tackling gang violence, which led the government to impose a state of emergency and forced the country’s Bitcoin-loving president Nayib Bukele to cancel his attendance at Bitcoin 2022. While western politicians have been quick to criticize the methods of the Bukele regime, Bukele has reported that the country has seen a flat line in homicide cases while arresting over 25,000 alleged terrorists in 41 days.
Since the start of the crisis, blockchain firms and concerned community members have banded together to support the country in different ways. Binance’s initiative aside, Bitfinex and Tether donated 25 BTC (approximately $1 million at the time) and launched a relief fund which raised at least another $1 million to help families affected by the crisis.
El Salvador’s Bitcoin Journey
El Salvador made history last September by being the first country to adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender in a move inspired by Bitcoin Beach projects to help local community members get better access to remittances. Pushing the envelope even further, the country’s leader Nayib Bukele also announced in November that the country would be creating a Bitcoin bond and building a Bitcoin city.
However, the Central American country’s adoption of Bitcoin has not been without hiccups. Recent studies have revealed that the adoption of Bitcoin has not quite taken off in the country despite its legal tender status, with residents continuing to prefer cash. Meanwhile, the country continues to face pressure from the IMF to reverse its stance on the popular cryptocurrency, while US lawmakers perceive the move as a threat to the dollar.
While the Bitcoin bond has been delayed, and as such, the building of Bitcoin city, the successful execution of both goals might lead to a shift in the current narrative. Presently, it is obvious that Nayib Bukele is not the only leader that believes in the potential of Bitcoin, as the Central African Republic has also taken the leap of adopting Bitcoin as legal tender as other regions also appear to be paving the way to do so.
Leave a Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
