Could Mexico be convinced to make Bitcoin legal tender?

Mexican senator Indira Kempis announced at the Bitcoin Miami conference that she would present a bill within the next two months that would propose that Mexico adopt bitcoin as legal tender in the country.

Following on from El Salvador’s adoption of bitcoin as legal tender alongside the US dollar, two further territories were announced at the Miami Bitcoin conference as accepting bitcoin as de-facto legal tender.

The two territories in question were Prospera, off the northern coast of Honduras, and Madeira, an autonomous region of Portugal. In the grand scheme of things, both territories are small and they probably won’t have much impact on the future of bitcoin. 

However, Mexico is a totally different ballgame. The large North American country ranks 10 in the world by largest population, and has 131 million people as of today. This population is growing fast in comparison with other countries and the median age is just over 29.

According to Kempis, around 66 million people in Mexico are excluded from the financial system, in that they are unable to access banking and all that entails. Kempis believes that bitcoin will grant financial inclusion to many of these.

Kempis said of this situation in February:

“Making bitcoin a legal tender means putting a level playing field for people who are excluded in almost all countries…We need bitcoin to be legal tender in Mexico, because if it is not so, if we do not make that decision as El Salvador did, it is very difficult to take action,”

Currently Mexico has little or no regulation as regards cryptocurrencies, and its president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador does not appear to be strongly either for or against them.

Therefore, the onus is really on Kempis and other pro bitcoin senators in Mexico to really push the agenda and strive to bring Mexico into the fold. If they should manage to do so then it probably wouldn’t take much more for that tipping point in bitcoin adoption to be reached.

However, lined up against Kempis and co are the massed ranks of those who lead, and are employed, in the traditional financial monetary system. Much stands to be lost and gained in the fight, and regulators, who are part of the existing monetary system, are likely to have a large say in the outcomes. 

Brave and forward-thinking senators such as Kempis are much needed in order to start the ball rolling. Those who have been taken advantage of by the current system are owed the possibility of being able to store their wealth in sound money such as bitcoin.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.