El Salvador’s Alejandra Guajardo Walks Miss Universe Stage in Glowing Bitcoin Suit
The moment came during the national costume show in the preliminary competition round.
The Miss Universe 2023 competition’s national costume competition today included several show-stopping events.
But for the bitcoin industry, it came when Alejandra Guajardo of El Salvador strutted onto the stage wearing a Bitcoin costume.
BTC on Miss Universe Stage
The Miss Universe contestant, a 27-year-old actress, and model used clothing to illustrate how her nation’s money has changed through time. She entered the stage while wearing a golden bitcoin dress and a scepter bearing the BTC logo.
She was dressed in a three-color ensemble that was very similar to the BTC logo: gold, silver, and bronze. Guajardo had a large coin model with the name of her nation etched on it on the back.
Guajardo’s bitcoin business soon rose to prominence in the world of cryptocurrencies. Francisco Guerrero, an artist and fashion designer from El Salvador, created it. He claims that the clothing depicts the development of his nation’s money from cocoa to colón, the US dollar, and bitcoin.
The 71st Miss Universe pageant, which is now being held in New Orleans, Louisiana, is set to conclude on January 14.
Beauty with Substance
The official website for Miss Universe quotes Alejandra Guajardo as saying, “Alejandra Guajardo accepts every chance near to her heart. She is incredibly appreciative of all the inspiration and love she gets from her family, friends, and fans. She has a degree in international business, and she first started selling hand-crafted stones to her neighbors when she was just five years old.
El Salvador’s BTC Strategy
The day when Guajardo wore a bitcoin outfit to the Miss Universe pageant also saw the Legislative Assembly of her nation enact a bill allowing the issuing of sovereign Bitcoin Bonds.
Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, recently criticized the mainstream media for criticizing his effort to purchase additional bitcoins, including through the impending Volcano Bond. In keeping with its bitcoin policy, the government of Bukele established a national bitcoin office in November to coordinate different activities using bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies both domestically and internationally.
The nation also decided to purchase one bitcoin per day to profit from the decline because BTC has lost about 65% of its value since hitting an all-time high in November 2021.
What worked and what didn’t?
Because of the volatility of the cryptocurrency and the hazy prospects for the initiative’s success, El Salvador’s move to declare Bitcoin legal cash has alarmed some of its populace. While certain aspects of the adoption of Bitcoin as legal cash went as expected, many others didn’t, which had some unforeseen effects.
The introduction of Bitcoin has harmed El Salvador’s credit standing and relations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Due to investors’ decreased willingness to lend to the country, local borrowers have been compelled to demand higher interest rates. Additionally, due to Bitcoin’s volatility and its use in fraud and other illegal activities, the IMF encouraged El Salvador to remove its position as a legal lender due to the serious threats to financial and market integrity, financial stability, and consumer protection.
The World Bank has also expressed concerns over the damaging impacts of cryptocurrencies on the environment that El Salvador’s Bitcoin policy has exposed.
The vast majority of Salvadorans are still ignorant of Bitcoin. Despite claims of economic independence and serving the unbanked, blockchain technology may be cumbersome from the standpoint of user experience standpoint till find it is simpler to deal in U.S. dollars.
El Salvador also has one of the lowest rates of internet usage in the Americas and is a developing nation. Many merchants, street sellers, and farmers lack the tools necessary to conduct cryptocurrency transactions. As a result, despite the government’s strong promotion, Bitcoin adoption for routine transactions is minimal.
However, the choice to let Bitcoin into the economy has succeeded in luring international capital to the nation. Technical sales manager of the blockchain software company Koibanx, Carlos G. Alfaro, told Cointelegraph:
Before the Bitcoin Law, the majority of Salvadorans lacked a way to save their money digitally and engage in cross-border transactions. As a result, the program helped the program get familiar with the concept of saving and investing.
Alfaro added that the $30 Bitcoin prize from the Chivo Wallet has acted as a stimulus to make people more interested in savings and investing, even though participation and use of Bitcoin may still be relatively low among the general public.
The nation’s investment policy has likewise shifted toward a more moderate course. Based on tweets from Bukele himself, the nation purchased Bitcoin 11 times for varying sums and prices. The most recent such purchase was 80 BTC for $1.5 million on June 30, 2022, although El Salvador is now making one such purchase per day to lessen toof Bitcoin’s volatility on the nation’s economy.
Expectations for 2023 and beyond
El Salvador still needs Bitcneedsthe recently revealed plans to create a Bitcoin city, and the nation wants to continue luring BTC investors in the years to come.
El Salvador is anticipated to improve its administrative capabilities in 2023 to deal with the usage of cryptocurrencies in its economy, including addressing any potential criminal activity. DitoBanx CEO Guillermo Contreras spoke to Cointelegraph:
El Salvador’s Bitcoin bonds may be issued under the new Digital Assets Issuance Law, which will go into effect in 2023, to help pay for the city’s infrastructure and purchase additional bitcoin. Additionally, this regulation will allow for the regulated development of business models based on blockchains.
El Salvador is still making strides toward having Bitcoin included in all national financial literacy initiatives. The nation’s Ministry of Education is anticipated to address widespread educational issues in 2023 with a training program in financial education that includes contemporary material like cryptocurrency and electronic wallets.
As a result of the use of Bitcoin and digital wallets, more than four million people were able to protect their funds and immediately and safely receive money via remittances and other sources, according to Contreras. There was undoubtedly some initial trepidation, but thankfully El Salvador had already gone through a similar experience when we switched from using Salvadoran colones as legal cash to using the U.S. dollar. Although there are still some obstacles to overcome, the route is well-marked and there is a decent perspective. It is a procedure that took some time, but eventually, users were able to certify that it was genuine money just like any other currency.
