Protests erupt against El Salvador’s planned adoption of bitcoin, protesters denounce the token’s volatility and corruption potential | Currency News | Financial and business news

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President of El Salvador Nayib Bukele speaks at a press conference on government security policy in San Salvador

Reuters

Protesters took to the streets late last week to oppose El Salvador’s adoption of bitcoin. The protests appeared to be part of a larger mobilization of retirees demanding higher payments, according to local media. President Nayib Bukele’s decision to adopt bitcoin as his country’s legal tender by September 7 has drawn criticism from big players like rating agencies and banks. Sign up for our daily newsletter, 10 things before the opening bell here.

Horns and megaphones sounded in San Salvador late last week as protesters took to the streets to oppose El Salvador’s impending adoption of bitcoin, according to multiple reports.

Carrying signs like “No to Corrupt Money Laundering!” and “We don’t want bitcoin,” protesters in the Salvadoran capital denounced the volatility and opacity of the cryptocurrency, according to a Reuters reporter at the scene.

“We know this coin fluctuates dramatically,” a union representative told Reuters during the protests. “Its value changes from second to second and we will have no control over it.”

The anti-bitcoin protests appeared to be part of a larger mobilization of retirees demanding higher payments, according to local media cited by CoinTelegraph. There were concerns that the government would distribute bitcoin retirement benefits, which could hurt the purchasing power of retirees in times of volatility.

President Nayib Bukele’s decision to adopt bitcoin as his country’s legal tender by September 7 has drawn criticism from big players like rating agencies and banks, who fear the country will put in jeopardize a key loan negotiation of the International Monetary Fund.

Last month, Moody’s downgraded El Salvador’s sovereign debt, while Fitch Ratings did the same for local insurance companies. Both rating agencies cited the significant downside risks of the Bitcoin law and its hasty implementation.

“The law was passed extremely quickly, without technical study or public debate,” Ricardo Castaeda, a Salvadoran economist, told the Guardian. “I don’t think the president fully understood the implications of the law, its potential to cause serious macroeconomic problems and turn the country into a money laundering paradise.”

“The transition from euphoria to skepticism has been very rapid,” he added.

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