El Salvador wants to build the first "Bitcoin City"

El Salvador wants to push the use of Bitcoin with a new city whose construction financing is to be based on the controversial cryptocurrency. "Bitcoin City" should become the first city of its kind in the world to be built with the income from new Bitcoin bonds, said President Nayib Bukele on Saturday. It should arise in the eastern region of La Union, use geothermal energy from a volcano and collect no taxes other than VAT. El Salvador was the first country in the world to approve Bitcoin as a legal tender this year. The state is also checking whether volcanic energy can be used to generate the cryptocurrency. Critics complain about the cryptocurrency not only that there is hardly any regulation, but also that it consumes a lot of energy when creating new coins. "Invest here and earn as much money as you want," said 40-year-old Bukele, dressed all in white and with his baseball cap turned back, at an event in the seaside resort of Mizata at the end of a week of Bitcoin advertising. with which El Salvador wants to attract investors. "This is a fully ecological city that works and is powered by a volcano." Half of the VAT collected should be used to finance the Bitcoin bonds issued to build the city, the other half for city services like garbage collection. Bukele estimated that the public infrastructure would cost around 300,000 bitcoins. El Salvador plans to issue the first Bitcoin bonds as early as next year. There is talk of a billion-dollar "volcano bond". But although Bukele enjoys high popularity ratings in opinion polls, not all compatriots share his love for Bitcoin. The bumpy adoption of the cryptocurrency had sparked anti-government protests.