The proposed issuance of Bitcoin bonds in El Salvador has been granted regulatory authorization by the Digital Assets Commission (CNAD) of the nation. The National Bitcoin Office (ONBTC) of the country tweeted the information, predicting that the bond would be issued “during the first quarter of 2024.” The bonds are slated to be listed on Bitfinex Securities, a regulated subsidiary of the Bitfinex cryptocurrency exchange.
The Volcano Bond has just received regulatory approval from the Digital Assets Commission (CNAD). We anticipate the bond will be issued during the first quarter of 2024.
El Salvador’s National Bitcoin Office posted from its X handle
🚨BREAKING NEWS🚨
— The Bitcoin Office (@bitcoinofficesv) December 12, 2023
The Volcano Bond has just received regulatory approval from the Digital Assets Commission (CNAD).
We anticipate the bond will be issued during the first quarter of 2024.
This is just the beginning for new capital markets on #Bitcoin in El Salvador.
🇸🇻🌋🚀
Additionally, the pro-Bitcoin leader of the country, Nayib Bukele, appeared to corroborate the news in a post titled “Wen volcano bond” and reposted multiple posts stating that the bonds will be issued in the first quarter of 2024.
Wen volcano bond? 🥺
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) December 12, 2023
In November 2021, the possibility of the nation issuing Volcano Bonds was first raised. On January 11, El Salvador initially enacted the seminal legislation that establishes the legal structure for the Bitcoin-backed bond. The Volcano Bond is designed to finance the construction of the nation’s proposed “Bitcoin City” and reduce sovereign debt.
Bukele aimed to secure $1 billion through the issuance of bitcoin-backed bonds, which would serve as the foundation for a bitcoin mining sector powered exclusively by renewable energy sources, such as the active volcanoes of the nation.
The initial issuance date of March 2022 was repeatedly pushed back. In contrast, towards the conclusion of November 2022, the digital assets measure was ultimately introduced in the Legislative Assembly, a chamber dominated by Bukele’s party, Nuevas Ideas.
It is the second significant bitcoin-related development in the past few weeks. Previously, El Salvador initiated the “Freedom VISA” initiative, which grants residency to a maximum of one thousand individuals annually for an investment of one million dollars worth of bitcoin or tether (USDT) stablecoins. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has strongly opposed the nation’s intention to issue bonds secured by Bitcoin. The IMF has consistently urged the country to repeal its Bitcoin Law, asserting that it “gives rise to several macroeconomic, financial, and legal concerns.”
