Honduras Launches 'Bitcoin Valley' in Santa Lucia
Honduras has launched a new project called 'Bitcoin Valley' in its tourist friendly region of Santa Lucia, through which the Central American country has tapped into the ongoing trend of digital currency.
It's only a twenty minute drive from the capital, Tegucigalpa, to this small town in the mountains, which has already become known as the city of Bitcoin.
In hopes of attracting more tourists to Santa Lucia, large and small scale merchants are adopting cryptocurrency as a means of payment, Reuters reported.
“This will bring more opportunities and attract more people who want to use this currency.” said Los Robles Shopping Square Manager Cesar Andino.
Bitcoin Valley is initially targeting 60 types of businesses, where the project is training traders to adapt to cryptocurrency to market their own products and services. Also, the country plans to spread these practices to more entrepreneurs and nearby areas.
The initiative was jointly supported by 'Blockchain Honduras', 'The Guatemalan Cryptocurrency Exchange Consortium', 'Coinsax', 'The Technological University of Honduras' and the Municipal Authority of Santa Lucia.
"In addition to educating the people of Santa Lucia on the use and management of cryptocurrencies, they will be developed for various business applications and crypto tourism in the region." said Professor Ruben Carbajal Velazquez of the Technological University.
While several Latin American countries are working on the potential of cryptocurrencies, there are also risks.
El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as an official currency in September 2021. Also, the popular surfing town of El Sant's Sagarati is now known as 'Bitcoin Beach' because of Bitcoin.