Latin America continues to look towards the Lightning Network for many reasons. The continent is home to millions of crypto users who have turned to this tech as a way to escape inflation, persecution, and localization. Today, Latam is a fast-growing crypto community that continues to embrace blockchain assets across the board.
Latin America Bitcoin Support on the Rise
The stats don’t lie. Latin America has embraced blockchain technology at a fast pace. Recent statistics reveal that the continent has seen a 40% increase in crypto usage compared to this time last year. The main factors driving this adoption are inflation and remittance payments. Cryptocurrencies provide the ideal solution for both of these demands, enabling the population to save on fees and avoid losses.
When you zoom in further, you can see that the Lightning Network has played a crucial role in Bitcoin adoption on many levels across the continent. Notably, Latin America is ideally suited for crypto usage as it costs much less than expanding the traditional financial system, which would require new banks, infrastructure, employees, and oversight.
Additionally, the Lightning Network is the best way to send Bitcoin globally. It’s been in beta testing for years and has proven to be a reliable and capable scaling solution. These factors have helped it to spread to all corners of the world. Here are some cool Lightning Network projects pioneering the Latin American market.
Osmo Enters Costa Rica – Latin America
Osmo is a popular mobile app that just expanded its presence into the Latin American market. The app allows anyone to buy, sell, and trade Bitcoin on the Lightning Network. It’s extremely flexible. You can purchase crypto using fiat, debit, or credit cards.
Source – Osmo
Osmo provides a lot of benefits to users. For one, you save on remittance payments between users. It costs pennies to send thousands of Bitocin on the Lightning Network globally versus the 10% average for fiat remittance payment fees. Additionally, you can send LN Bitcoin payments in seconds in a permissionless manner using this Dapp. Use the Dapp to convert funds seamlessly between USDC, Bitcoin, and fiat currencies as well, providing full access to the decentralized economy.
Simpemovil partnered with Osmo to provide the top-up and withdrawal features of the protocol. This interaction makes it easier than ever for Latam crypto users to enter the market, use crypto for daily purchases, and send funds to family members abroad.
Nubank Partners with Lightspark
The Lightning Network made major headway into Latin America on June 25, when the Brazilian financial institution Nubank, backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, announced a strategic partnership with Lightning Network developer Lightspark. The partnership will provide Nubank customers direct access to the blockchain economy via Lightspark payment processing features. As part of this strategy, users can purchase, trade, and hold their Bitcoins at Nubank, which has +100M customers located in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia.
Notably, Lightspark entered the market in 2022 and was founded by former PayPal president David Marcus. Since its launch, it has helped to introduce multiple high-level institutions to LN-powered Bitcoin. Now, Nubank clients will have the option to leverage a Universal Money Address standard. This protocol allows users to skip the long Bitcoin addresses. Instead, they can leverage email-like addresses which are much easier to remember and share.
El Salvador
On June 9th, 2021, El Salvador made history as the first country to make Bitcoin legal tender. The law made the world’s first cryptocurrency equivalent to the national currency, the US dollar. As such, it had to be accepted by vendors, government officials, and other vital entities, opening the door for daily crypto use for millions of citizens.
Notably, the decision to make Bitcoin legal tender came alongside an educational push and a Lightning Network wallet for each citizen with around $60 worth of BTC at the time. Interstingly, citizens needed to use facial recognition to receive their wallets and unlock the coins. Notably, the campaign rollout started rough but has since become a source of national pride.
Bitcoin Beach
El Salvador didn’t stop at making Bitcoin legal tender. The country went the extra mile and dedicated a community towards crypto adoption. Bitcoin Beach is located in the village of El Zonte. It was launched in 2019 by a group of crypto backers with the goal to educate the community and provide more financial inclusion via blockchain assets.
Today, Bitcoin Beach is a major tourist attraction. Since its launch, the government has increased its size and features to meet its growing community. Notably, Bitcoin Beach is seen as one of the most progressive crypto destinations in the world and is frequented by some of the biggest players in the Bitcoin market.
Volcanic Mining
Notably, El Salvador has also pursued a variety of methods of building up its Bitcoin reserves. The country currently holds around 5,760 Bitcoin as reserves which it continually adds to thanks to a variety of mining operations in the country. Most interesting is the nation’s Volcanic geothermal operations which launched in 2021 and have continually expanded with great success.
Located on their historic Tecapa volcano, this mining operation has already mined +29M in Bitcoin using renewable energy. This approach helps to tackle the high cost of mining while reducing the carbon footprint, adding to the overall profitability of each mined Bitcoin.
BTC ATMs Everywhere in Latin America
Another sign that Bitcoin has become more popular in Latam is the rise in Bitcoin ATMs. Firms like CHAVO now offer whitelabel solutions which have helped to expand the market to new heights. Now, it’s more common than ever to see a Bitcoin ATM or “accepted here” sign here in Latin America.
Latin America is Ready to Support Lightning Network BTC
It’s easy to see from these projects the added market penetration the Lightning Network achieved over the last year. These projects place Bitcoin’s ultimate scaling solution on the front line where it can help to keep prices down, improve privacy, and expand features. For these reasons, and many more, Latin America continues to embrace Bitcoin.
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Publish date : 2024-09-28 09:14:00
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