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El Salvador’s missing critics received new ammunition this week.
A recent survey revealed that only 7.5% of Salvadorans use Bitcoin for transactions, and that 92% of Salvadorans do not. But while some (reference: Steve Hanke) may look at these numbers and think “Oh, that experiment failed,” I disagree.
Even putting aside the increase in tourism, business activities, and international popularity, El Salvador’s Bitcoin tender law has been a success.
El Salvador currently has a population of about 6.3 million, which means that 475,000 people (7.5%) now use Bitcoin for transactions. The fact that almost half a million citizens are now using BTC in their daily lives for transactions is very impressive, but the Lindy effect means that we can expect this number to increase in the future.
Considering the history of El Salvador, it was clear from the beginning that the entire country was not going to start using this new payment technology from day one. El Salvador has a history of failed currency regimes. It takes time with any new system to build trust.
As I commented three years ago, I believe that Bitcoin needs to be a store of value first before it becomes a place of exchange. Bitcoin today, even though it is a 1.4 trillion dollar asset, is still a waste in the ocean compared to the world’s great wealth.
There is still a general consensus in the general public that Bitcoin is dangerous to get into, and that will need to change before many people in many countries start using it on a daily basis.
Bitcoin is still a new emerging asset class. The more it grows, the more credibility it gains, the higher the prices, the more innovation happens and the more new transaction and storage solutions are born to meet non-technical people where they are.
This will take time, but it is an ongoing process.
I see many Bitcoiners on the Internet who are so active that they believe that adoption as a means of daily transactions will suddenly happen in the next few years, but this underestimates the real world data, like this study, which shows that the process is very slow.
All of this means that if Bitcoin is going to see global merchant adoption and daily use by people, we will need to see a much higher value, Bitcoin will need to be easier to use, and more reliable than it is today. .
How long will it really take? I don’t know for sure. But if you think of it as a loading bar, we are already 7.5% on our way to 100% of Salvadorans using Bitcoin.
Remember, this is progress. Nothing happens overnight.
This article is a Take it. The views expressed are entirely those of the author and do not reflect those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.
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