In A First, El Salvador Adopts Bitcoin As Currency

San Salvador: El Salvador on Tuesday became the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, although it suffered teething problems when the government had to unplug a digital wallet to cope with demand.

President Nayib Bukele, who pushed for the adoption of the cryptocurrency, called for help from users who had downloaded the government-backed app, to test if it was now working properly. “Could you please try to register and post in the comments if there are any errors?” he wrote on Twitter. Bukele said using bitcoin will help Salvadorans save $400 million a year on commissions for remittances while giving access to financial services to those with no bank account. Carlos Garcia, who went to a booth giving out advice on the new currency at a mall on Tuesday to learn about how transactions would work, was excited about the opportunities bitcoin could provide. “El Salvador is taking a great step forward today,” he said.