New U.S. Bill (ACES) Antagonizes El Salvador’s Bitcoin Adoption

On April 4, U.S. Representative for California’s 35th District, Congresswoman Norma J. Torres, announced that she introduced the Accountability for Cryptocurrency in El Salvador (ACES) act alongside Congressman Rick Crawford. The act aims to mitigate the risks of El Salvador’s Bitcoin adoption as legal tender to the United States.

Rep. Torres further stated, “El Salvador is an independent democracy and we respect its right to self-govern, but the United States must have a plan in place to protect our financial systems from the risks of this decision.”      

Meanwhile, Representative Crawford said, “The rise in popularity of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin creates questions and a necessary review of regulation and consumer protection which the U.S. federal government should be involved in.”  

El Salvador’s hasty decision to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender causes concern for the stability of the U.S.-Salvadorian economic relationship. It is our job as policymakers to better understand the potential effects of the adoption of Bitcoin as legal currency in El Salvador and what the U.S. can learn going forward.

At the time of writing, the responses to Rep. Torres’ tweet have been overwhelmingly negative. Replies have been closed, therefore users have been quote tweeting her and sending plenty of mockeries towards the congresswoman.

Scott Melker, author of the Wolf Den Newsletter, quote tweeted Rep. Torres’ saying that they are only chasing clout at the expense of Bitcoin.

The ACES bill would require the State Department to conduct an assessment of the risks to economic stability, democratic governance, and cybersecurity in El Salvador as a result of its acceptance of Bitcoin as legal tender. In addition, it requires the State Department to develop a strategy to mitigate such risks for the U.S. financial system.