El Salvador, famous for its Bitcoin-friendly policies, has seen many crypto visitors. But are people really thinking about moving their families there?
Bitcoin Beach Co-Founder Roman Martinez says that many Bitcoin enthusiasts are considering relocating to El Salvador due to increasing international crypto regulations.
El Salvador: A “Plan B” for Bitcoin families
At the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville on July 27, Martinez spoke to Cointelegraph. He said that some people who feel left out by traditional financial systems are considering moving to El Salvador because of its Bitcoin-friendly policies. According to Martinez, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele may have inspired other countries by making Bitcoin legal tender in 2021.
“A lot of families, individuals are seeing El Salvador as a Plan B,” said Martinez. “They’re buying properties, a lot of Bitcoiners, they’re moving to El Salvador to live there and they wanna raise their kids there.”
Martinez mentioned that people from Europe, the United States, and Canada are thinking about moving to El Salvador because it’s more affordable to raise a family and buy a home while using Bitcoin. In April, President Bukele announced a plan to offer 5,000 foreign workers a pathway to citizenship.
Out of El Salvador’s 6.5 million people, about 95,000 are noncitizens or immigrants. Of these, 58% come from Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala, leaving around 55,000 from other countries, including the US.
Since taking office in 2019 and being reelected in 2024, Bukele has called himself the “world’s coolest dictator” and pushed for pro-crypto laws in a legislature controlled by his party. Critics say Bukele has enforced authoritarian policies, with reports of police detaining people who criticize his administration.
As of now Bitcoin BTC is trading at $66,980 and its down over 2%.
