US Senate Is Considering A Bill To Examine Bitcoin Use In El Salvador
The United States senate will vote on a bill looking into the risks to the U.S. financial system from El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender. The bill was passed out of committee on Wednesday.
Senators James Risch (R-Idaho), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) introduced “Accountability for Cryptocurrency in El Salvador (ACES) Act” on February 16.
Sen. Risch commented in the statement:
“As El Salvador has adopted Bitcoin as legal tender, it’s important we understand and mitigate potential risks to the U.S. financial system.”
He added that the legislation would require the State and Treasury Departments along with other federal agencies to mitigate risks such as potential empowerment of China and organized criminal organizations.
In addition, the new bill would urge the United States to monitor remittances from El Salvador.
Nayib Bukele, El Salvador’s President, voiced his dissatisfaction after the bill passed in committee. He tweeted:
“Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that the US Government would be afraid of what we are doing here.”
Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that the US Government would be afraid of what we are doing here. pic.twitter.com/QgJPa70mn0
In September last year, El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender, and launched a government-backed wallet and offering incentives for using BTC. In January Bukele also announced the country would raise $1 billion through a Bitcoin-backed bond issuance, was recently delayed from its initial planned launch of mid-March.
