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⚡Bitcoin Designated as Official Currency🇦🇷

Croxroad

22 Dec 2023 — 4 min read

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🇦🇷 Argentina's Bold Move

Argentina's new government, led by crypto-friendly President Javier Milei, has officially confirmed that contracts denominated in Bitcoin can now be recognized by the country's courts. This landmark decision, announced on December 21 by Argentina's Foreign Minister Diana Modino on social media, reflects the president's campaign promise to integrate cryptocurrency into the nation's legal framework.

The tweet by Modino emphasised that Argentina formally acknowledges the use of Bitcoin in contractual agreements, marking a significant shift in the country's stance on digital currencies. The announcement also highlighted a broader acceptance of various cryptocurrencies and even other commodities, such as kilograms of beef or litres of milk, in accordance with existing laws.

While specific government measures related to cryptocurrency were not detailed, this early acknowledgment aligns with President Milei's commitment to combat financial inefficiencies and corruption through the adoption of Bitcoin. Argentina faces challenges like severe hyperinflation and currency devaluation, and this move is seen as a potential initial step towards wider cryptocurrency adoption. Some speculate that if Argentina, South America's second-largest economy, embraces Bitcoin more widely, it could influence the global use of cryptocurrencies.

The formal approval of Bitcoin in contracts is a significant development, indicating that Argentina may be moving towards broader crypto adoption. Mauricio Di Bartolomeo, co-founder of Ledn, a prominent crypto lending and trading platform, suggests that Argentinians can soon expect to legally transact in Bitcoin and stablecoins, following Milei's election.

In recent years, many Argentinians have turned to digital currencies like Bitcoin and USD-denominated stablecoins due to the erosion of the local Peso's value amid double-digit inflation. While the ratification is historic in the Latin American region, it was not entirely unexpected for many citizens. Di Bartolomeo had already predicted, following Milei's election, that Argentinians would soon have the legal ability to transact in Bitcoin and stablecoins.

In conclusion, Argentina's formal approval of Bitcoin in legally-binding contracts represents a crucial step, hinting at the country's potential shift towards more extensive cryptocurrency adoption in the future.

📢 Bitcoin ETF Showdown

In the latest rounds of the crypto marketing war, two prominent issuers of Spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have fired off a total of three new ads in just a span of two days. Bitwise kicked things off on December 18 with the first Bitcoin ETF ad, featuring actor Jonathan Goldsmith, famed for his "Most Interesting Man in the World" character from the Dos Equis beer campaign.

Following suit, Hashdex entered the scene on December 20 with a crypto ad featuring a dumper truck and captions emphasising that stocks, fixed income, and precious metals are not crypto, before promoting the firm. Bitwise quickly countered with another short ad on the same day, again featuring Goldsmith, who humorously mentioned that Satoshi sends his regards, keeping the promotional momentum going.

Despite the lively back-and-forth, social media responses seemed to lean towards favouring Bitwise's advertising efforts. Interestingly, both companies are displaying a high level of confidence in a financial product – the Bitcoin ETF – that is still awaiting regulatory approval.

Even though regulatory clearance for the 13 pending spot Bitcoin ETFs is yet to be granted, analysts believe there's a strong likelihood of approval by the SEC, with estimates reaching 90% by January 10.

Samson Mow, Bitcoin pioneer and JAN3 CEO, weighed in on the significance of these marketing campaigns for Bitcoin ETFs on December 20. He noted that companies vying for a spot in the Bitcoin ETF arena are engaged in fierce competition for investors, inflows, and assets under management, with branding emerging as a key battleground. Mow predicted that this battle for the "Bitcoin orange glow" would escalate, envisioning potential ads from industry giants like BlackRock and Fidelity featuring well-known figures like Novak Djokovic and Michael Saylor, respectively, to further heat up the competition.

🧿 So Why isn’t Everyone Mining?

Mining in the context of Bitcoin is essentially the process of solving complex mathematical cryptographic problems based on a hashing algorithm. The difficulty of these problems adjusts based on the number of miners actively participating in the network.

During the early years of Bitcoin, it was possible to mine using a personal computer equipped with a regular GPU, and the electricity costs were relatively low. However, as the popularity of Bitcoin has surged, so has the competition among miners. Nowadays, it's not individuals but rather large companies that dominate the mining landscape. These companies invest significant amounts of money into scaling their operations and acquiring specialised equipment to stay competitive.

It's crucial to understand that there is a finite supply of Bitcoin, capped at 21 million coins. This limit is expected to be reached around the year 2140. Once this cap is reached, no new Bitcoin will be created through mining, and miners will rely solely on transaction fees for their compensation. This scarcity adds an interesting dynamic to the world of Bitcoin mining, making it a race against time and competition for those involved in the process.