Name, a major cryptocurrency exchange in Latin America, will be the main cryptocurrency service provider for the official Bitcoin wallet (BTC) from El Salvador, known as Chivo.
Along with Bitcoin becoming legal tender in El Salvador, Bitso announced on September 7 that the firm would help El Salvador launch the state-backed BTC wallet alongside companies such as Silvergate Bank., digital currency company Athena Bitcoin, and blockchain firm Algorand.
Silvergate Bank, a commercial bank licensed by the state of California and a member of the United States Federal Reserve, will work with Bitso to facilitate transactions in US dollars for the Chivo wallet. Athena Bitcoin will provide some front-end services and operations related to Chivo’s ATMs, while Algorand will act as the official blockchain provider.
Released Tuesday, the state-issued Chivo wallet is designed to allow individuals and businesses to send payments in Bitcoin or dollars from anywhere in the world. The wallet is available on Android and iOS, allowing users to automatically convert Bitcoin transactions into dollars or maintain their Bitcoin holdings and subsequently withdraw them in cash from 200 Bitcoin ATMs installed nationwide.
A Bitso spokesperson told Cointelegraph that Chivo users will not have to pay network-related fees, and noted that “none of the withdrawals, deposits or other transactions” made with the Chivo application would generate fees for users, and explained:
“The Salvadoran government has created strategic alliances to guarantee that convertibility is carried out at the most competitive prices possible, and users will not have to face any cost.”
“The use of the Chivo wallet is completely optional, and those without citizenship will also be able to access the application”Bitso noted in the announcement.
Santiago Alvarado, Bitso’s business vice president, expressed his confidence that the acceptance of Bitcoin from El Salvador will have a “positive impact on the lives of millions of Salvadorans”.
“Over the past seven years, we have worked tirelessly to identify the best approach to make Bitcoin accessible to more than 2.75 million customers in Mexico, Argentina, and Brazil. Today, as the leading provider of cryptocurrency services for El Salvador’s wallet, we are committed to making cryptocurrency useful for Salvadorans. “Alvarado added.
After the launch of the Chivo wallet, the Salvadoran president, Watch It, reported that temporary capacity errors on the platform were causing application installation problems. Bukele said Chivo will temporarily shut down its systems to fix the problem. The president too he pointed that Chivo would be available to Salvadorans in the United States and “almost every country in the world”.
Founded in 2014, Bitso is a major cryptocurrency platform in Latin America, backed by big cryptocurrency companies like US cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and Ripple. The exchange saw its user base nearly triple from 1 million in July 2020 to almost 3 million users in September 2021. In late August, the company hired Facebook veteran Vaughan Smith as director of operations, after a $ 250 million capital increase at the beginning of this year.
President Bukele announced legislation to accept Bitcoin as legal tender together with the US dollar in early June, with the aim of depositing the unbanked population through the use of digital currency, since the 70% of Salvadorans lack access to basic financial services. Subsequently, the bill was approved by the Legislative Assembly of the nation and was scheduled to be implemented on September 7.
Many people in El Salvador have opposed the government’s plans to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender., citing volatility and safety concerns, which sparked several protests. According to the survey of the Institute of Public Opinion of the Central American University of El Salvador, 70% of Salvadorans believe that Bukele’s Bitcoin law, which recognizes cryptocurrency as legal tender, should be repealed. More than 90% of those surveyed also said they have a poor knowledge of cryptocurrencies.
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