Is bitcoin a harbinger of a financial revolution in El Salvador?

President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador at an event in June to mark his third year in office. Jose Cabezas/Reuters Bitcoin was meant to transform El Salvador’s economy, catapulting the poor Central American nation into an unlikely harbinger of a financial revolution.

What happened to bitcoin?

Its death spiral began in February 2014, when the company suspended trading, closed its website, and filed for bankruptcy protection while 850,000 bitcoins evaporated from customers valued at more than US$450 million at the time (10.2 Billion today). CEO Mark Karpelès has been arrested by the Japanese police a couple of times for his part in this.

Will bitcoin ever catch on?

This is not to say that bitcoin will never catch on, but as of June 2020 that simply is not the case. First, price volatility and the near obsession over price levels discourage both retail investors and merchants from using bitcoin as an effective medium of exchange to conduct transactions.

Is bitcoin worthless?

As Bitcoiners themselves are fond of saying, ‘one Bitcoin = one Bitcoin’. But a tautology does not a currency make.” He said scarcity of the crypto asset – which is limited to 21m bitcoin – is among the key reasons for its attraction for investors, but this feature embedded into its design “may even, ultimately, render Bitcoin worthless”.