Bitcoin responds positively as Brazil welcomes crypto payments

FXOpen

Within Latin America, Brazil has for many years been a burgeoning economic force.

It is a large nation with a diversified economy, ranging from manufacturing and engineering to banking and tertiary services and is part of the all-important BRICS (Brazil, India, China, South Africa) economic bloc.

Like all other nations in South America, Brazil is a developing economy, but it has been rapidly developing and is far ahead of all of the other national economies in the continent.

Today, Brazil's government has taken a very prominent step forward in announcing that the country's lawmakers have approved a bill which regulates Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as a payment instrument.

Investors appear to have responded well to the news, as Bitcoin began to pump almost immediately, followed by a short squeeze and then it pumped again.

Bitcoin is currently trading at $16,876.80, which is a 2.68% increase over yesterday's value. That may not sound very much on the face of it, but Bitcoin values have been very stagnant recently, so a 2.68% increase when viewed on the chart is quite significant.

Private individuals and businesses have a lot to gain from the new ruling which allows cryptocurrency to be used as a method of payment, because South American economies for many decades now have been synonymous with rampant inflation, draconian capital control laws causing people to lose their money when it depreciates, and in many countries in South America, a deep-seated distrust in the local banking infrastruture or government policy.

Around 10 years ago, neighboring Argentina ordered the liquidation of US Dollar bank accounts held in North America by Argentinian citizens, and that the US Dollars should be repatriated to Argentina and converted to Pesos. At the same time, capital controls were invoked so that nobody could transfer their Pesos out of the country without government permission.

This meant that anyone who adhered to that rule would be at grave risk of substantial loss due to a terrible conversion rate and then having to store Pesos which are notorious for depreciating at the rate of an iron girder falling off a cliff.

At that time, Bitcoin was in its absolute infancy, and still very much an unknown quantity. It had a tiny following of enthusiasts and 1 Bitcoin was worth something like $50, however a core group of Argentinian enthusiasts began to rally the cause of Bitcoin, largely because they saw it as an independent method of conducting their everyday life without the restrictions and inflationary chaos associated with Peso.

Now, many years later, Bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies are very established globally, and South America's largest economy is opening its doors to them.

If this paves the way for greater acceptance across the South American continent, it could well be a boon for citizens as well as for the cryptocurrency market itself.

FXOpen offers the world's most popular cryptocurrency CFDs*, including Bitcoin and Ethereum. Floating spreads, 1:2 leverage, 30% margin call, 0.01 lot minimum transaction size with no maximum — at your service. Open your trading account now or learn more about crypto CFD trading with FXOpen.

*At FXOpen UK and FXOpen AU, Cryptocurrency CFDs are only available for trading by those clients categorised as Professional clients under FCA Rules and Professional clients under ASIC Rules respectively. They are not available for trading by Retail clients.

This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only. It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

Latest from Cryptocurrencies

BTC/USD Analysis: New High for the Year Shows Bulls Are Indecisive Market Analysis: Results of Black Friday in Financial Markets BTC/USD Analysis: Bulls Preparing New Assault on 37,500 Level? BTC/USD Analysis: Bears Aggressively Defending 37,500 Level BTC/USD Analysis: JP Morgan Analysts Warn of a Possible Correction

Latest articles

Forex Analysis

European Currencies at Strategic Levels

The downward trend in the US currency continues to gain momentum. Thus, the euro/dollar pair yesterday tested important resistance at 1.1000, the pound/dollar pair strengthened to 1.2700, and the usd/cad pair fell below 1.3600.

Indices

Market Analysis: Stock Market Reaction to US GDP News

According to data released yesterday, the US economy is growing at a stronger pace than expected. Thus, US GDP in the 3rd quarter increased by 5.3% in annual terms (an increase of 4.9% was expected). Combined with softening

Cryptocurrencies

BTC/USD Analysis: New High for the Year Shows Bulls Are Indecisive

During November, the price of bitcoin increased by approximately 10% in anticipation of the launch of a bitcoin ETF. But the positive sentiment of crypto investors is seriously overshadowed by news regarding Binance: → Changpeng Zhao resigned as head of Binance.

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 60% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.