Napoleon Osorio takes pride in being the first taxi driver to accept Bitcoin as payment in El Salvador, the world’s first country to adopt the cryptocurrency as legal tender.
He attributes his transformation to President Nayib Bukele’s bold decision three years ago to embrace Bitcoin, which he believes changed his life.
“Before, I was unemployed. Now I own my own business,” said the 39-year-old, who now operates a car rental service and processes rides through an app that accepts Bitcoin.
Three years ago, Bukele made a controversial move by introducing Bitcoin into the country’s economy, hoping to revitalize El Salvador’s dollar-based and remittance-reliant system.
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He invested hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars into the cryptocurrency despite warnings from global financial institutions about its volatility.
Osorio credits John Dennehy, the U.S. founder of the NGO My First Bitcoin, for encouraging him to accept Bitcoin payments.
Now, with 21 drivers working for his Bit-Driver brand and profits from Bitcoin’s rise, Osorio has expanded his fleet to four rental vehicles and can comfortably cover his teenagers’ education.
When Bukele launched Bitcoin as legal tender on September 7, 2021, his goal was to integrate the 70 percent of Salvadorans who were unbanked into the financial system.
He introduced the Chivo Wallet app for free Bitcoin transactions and provided $30 in Bitcoin to new users to encourage adoption.
However, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expressed concerns, delaying a $1.3 billion loan due to the country’s adoption of Bitcoin.
In August, the IMF reached a preliminary agreement with El Salvador, emphasizing the need to address “potential risks.”
While Osorio has prospered with Bitcoin, a University Institute for Public Opinion study revealed that 88 percent of Salvadorans had not used it.
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“From the start, it was clear that this was a poorly advised measure that the public rejected,” said Laura Andrade, the institute’s director.
Despite Bukele’s ambitions, Bitcoin adoption has been limited. In 2023, only one percent of remittances were made in cryptocurrency.
In an August interview with Time magazine, Bukele admitted that Bitcoin had not achieved the widespread use he had hoped for but emphasized that its adoption was voluntary and beneficial for those who chose to use it.
Bukele also revealed that El Salvador holds approximately $400 million in Bitcoin in a public “cold storage wallet” to keep it offline. Bitcoin’s value has fluctuated significantly, trading around $52,000 this week, down from a peak of $73,616 in March and a low of $16,189 in November 2022.
Independent economist Cesar Villalona noted that Bukele’s restrictions on Bitcoin’s use for salaries, pensions, savings, and pricing undermined its effectiveness as money.
Luis Contreras from My First Bitcoin explained that many Salvadorans are hesitant to switch due to fear of new technology and the shift from traditional currency to a digital and decentralized one.
The organization has educated around 35,000 students in public schools about Bitcoin, aiming to ease these fears and foster greater adoption.
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