Bulgaria Explores Crypto As Payment Option
Despite the controversy that has surrounded the crypto world for years, there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel as more and more countries are beginning to accept or explore cryptocurrency as a means of payment.
This development started last year with El Salvador’s acceptance of crypto as a legal tender, followed by Ukraine’s legal recognition of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, then Paraguay’s deed of cryptocurrency endorsement. Currently, the next nation jumping on board is none other than Bulgaria.
How Was This Discovered?
The deputy chief officer of the European Union funds, who also doubles as the nation’s finance administrator, Assen Vassilev, has recently alleged the nation’s attempt at exploring ways to adopt a cryptocurrency payment model.
https://twitter.com/LunarCrush/status/1484626910588121089?s=20
Speaking in an interview, Vassilev mentioned ongoing deliberations between the Central Bank of Bulgaria alongside pivotal commerce industrialists to further discuss the feasibility of these suggested cryptocurrency payment models in both brief and moderate terms. Going further, he clarified that although many crypto investors are currently planning to flee Kazakhstan because of the ongoing network tumult alongside political difficulty, Bulgaria is not likely to serve as the much-desired refuge suitable for them.
It is a common belief amongst other nations that the Bulgarian administration is possibly one of the planet’s largest crypto HODLers. This development probably results from the confiscation of approximately 213,519 BTC realized from a subsurface criminal chain web foregoing the ‘Bull Run’ of 2017. The seized BTC was worth about $3.5 billion during the point of takeover but is currently worth approximately $8.2 billion. Although, we don’t know for certain whether the confiscated coins were traded or marketed or whether they are still in the custody of the Bulgarian administration.
Interestingly, despite being a pivotal part of the prestigious European Union, Bulgaria is one of the eight other nations that are still yet to legally accept the Euro as a legal tender. This means, by implication, Bulgaria would not derive any economic advantage resulting from the introduction of the European Union’s virtual Euro that would be distributed amongst the central banks of participating countries.
However, halfway to 2022, the Bulgarian administration alongside the country’s Central Bank announced their intention to endorse the Euro as a legal tender by 2024. Speaking further on the topic, Christine Lagarde, presiding president of the European National Bank, clarified that the novel virtual Euro would not probably be inaugurated till the year 2025, or even later.
The likely reason behind the Bulgarian administration’s initial hesitation to adopt cryptocurrency might have resulted from the ten-year imprisonment of the proprietor of RG Coins, a cryptocurrency trading platform domiciled in Bulgaria. Rossen Lossifov was tried by a US Federal jury, where he was declared guilty of money laundering and intended racketeering conspiracy.
If this payment option is finally adopted, it will be a big win for the crypto world that we can’t wait to see!
https://twitter.com/DocumentingBTC/status/1407787001865199616?s=20
