The internet buzzed with rumors about Paraguay’s potential move to legalize bitcoin in the wake of El Salvador’s historic decision.
These may be a bit off-the-mark.
Paraguayan lawmaker Carlos Rejala had accidentally sparked the excitement earlier in June with a Tweet. On Friday, Reuters reported that he was pushing a bill for regulation of cryptocurrencies and not making them legal tender.
Rejala, a centrist legislator, stated that it is a bill that digital assets are being taken as legal currency. It will not be possible to do anything similar in Paraguay.
Rejala tweeted earlier in June that he was linking to a story on a local entertainment company planning to accept cryptocurrency. July is the month we legislate! #Bitcoin was picked up by some media and twitter users.
The 36-year old, who heads a small political party that has four seats in Congress overall, is trying to get support for his bill to regulate digital assets. He is currently working on three drafts for the law that he will present on July 14.
Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador, announced that a law recently passed making bitcoin legal tender will be in effect starting Sept. 7. This makes El Salvador the first country to do so.
Bukele stated that he believes the project will succeed and can be a “leap forward in humanity” despite the fact that the World Bank declined technical support and the International Monetary Fund expressed concern.
Rejala in Paraguay stated that even though he doesn’t have a majority in Congress he had other lawmakers interested in his proposal, and he was certain of its approval.
He stated that he wanted the banks and regulators to participate in order for Paraguayans and foreigners to legally operate with these assets.
“We want to be crypto-friendly.”
