If you are living somewhere crypto is an acceptable form a payment, you may have noticed that adoption seems to be correlated to the Bitcoin price action. In other words, as the price goes up, adoption increases, and as the price drops, adoption falls along with it.
El Salvador's Bold Move
Back in late 2021, Bitcoin was making new all-time highs, El Salvador was passing laws to make it legal tender, and almost every business in this small Central American country was excited to start accepting it as payment.
It also didn't hurt that the Salvadoran government had airdopped $30 of free Bitcoin to any citizen who had signed up for the official Chivo wallet. For a moment, it seemed like El Salvador was well on its way to cultivating a Bitcoin-based economy.
Bitcoin/Crypto Crashes
But we all know what happened in 2022. The price of Bitcoin began to stumble as the Federal Reserve started to raise interest rates. Then it nose-dived when Terra/Luna collapsed in May, and once again when FTX went bankrupt in November. These events led to another protracted bear market.
As per usual, the population began to lose faith in Bitcoin/crypto as its value (relative to fiat) plummeted over the course of several months, and then years. This has happened throughout every crypto bull/bear cycle since Bitcoin's inception in 2009, and eventually becomes predictable.
Despite the recurring market crashes, there always remains a hardcore group of users relentlessly pushing crypto forward, even though the prices are dismal. This group expands after each market cycle, bringing more people into the space, and always sets the stage for the next bull-run.
Adoption Re-Accelerating
Near the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022 there were plenty of signs up in El Salvador saying "pay with your Bitcoins", but as 2022 dragged on and the market fell into a slumber in 2023, there were fewer and fewer establishments willing to accept it.
However, now that Bitcoin has reached a fresh all-time high ($92,500 three days ago), and the overall crypto market has breached the $3.1 trillion dollar mark, we're starting to notice more Bitcoin signs in establishments that were refusing to accept it only a few months prior.
These signs are usually posted at cafes and restaurants that have partnered with local Bitcoin companies, but there are other establishments accepting it as well now. For example, the tour guides at the National Palace in "El Centro" were more than happy to accept Bitcoin as payment just a few days ago.
Until next time...
I suspect more of these signs will be popping up as the bull-run gains steam throughout the final two months of 2024, and into 2025.
Only time will tell if we fall into another extended crypto bear market. But it's tough to imagine the US dollar retaining its strength as the BRICS currency is established, and crypto continues to be adopted worldwide.
If you learned something new from this article, be sure to check out my other posts on crypto and finance here on the HIVE blockchain. You can also follow me on InLeo for more frequent updates.