El Salvador’s challenge is to explain that bitcoin is not physical currency: banker Dante Mossi. The CABEI executive supports El Salvador in its recognition of bitcoin. The institution prepares a team to advise the government of Nayib Bukele.

For the Honduran banker Dante Mossi, executive president of the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), El Salvador has several challenges to face in the face of what will be its adoption of bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender. According to the manager, the most challenging obstacle will be teaching the population that the first cryptocurrency does not physically exist.

Mossi said that there are topics related to digital assets that are very innovative, but that are also difficult to explain. The executive stressed that cash does not exist in the cryptocurrency ecosystem , an aspect that may be assimilated little by little.

“The adoption of bitcoin will require many adaptations. One of the most difficult challenges to understand (for the population) is that the currency is not a physical means of payment, it is how we conceptualize a currency in such a way “, declared Mossi during a virtual press conference held on the morning of this Monday, June 14.

In relation to the steps that El Salvador will follow to adjust the new Bitcoin Law to current financial regulations, the official revealed that CABEI is forming a team of advisers. The group will hold meetings with the delegates of the Ministry of Finance and with representatives of the Central Bank of the Salvadoran Reserve.

It was not clear when the working group will be established, or when the meetings will begin. Mossi indicated that technical advice was requested by the Salvadoran government to accelerate the adoption of BTC as legal tender. The manager added that CABEI will consult with its partners in Spain, Taiwan and South Korea to learn about their experiences regarding the regulation of bitcoin.

Bitcoin as a means of payment in El Salvador
The authorities of El Salvador have reiterated that the adoption of bitcoin will be as an alternative to the United States dollar , that is, both currencies will circulate together. To explain what this dynamic would look like, Mossi said that people who use BTC will be able to pay for products and services using their cell phones or debit cards. While those who use dollars will do so in cash or through available electronic methods.

“As the ordinary citizen is going to work in this new environment, it is quite a challenge and we must find the best way to protect the user. The regulatory framework must allow the government to have control over who is using this means of payment, ”Mossi commented.

Another point mentioned during the meeting with the media is that El Salvador has not made any request for funds on the trust that it intends to open to assume the risks of BTC volatility. This fund would be 150 million dollars , as reported by CriptoNoticias.

The manager mentioned that countries are using cash less and less and that the evolution will be cryptocurrencies. Mossi defended them by saying that they lower costs in the case of sending remittances and that, since it is digital money, there are no resources available for printing banknotes and minting coins.