Listen Now: The Bitcoin Boom

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Bitcoin, a digital currency taking a step up in the world. I’m Brian Banmiller on business.

El Salvador’s president is pitching a plan to make Bitcoin Cryptocurrency legal tender in his country. If backed by Congress, El Salvador would be the worlds first to formally adopt the currency. It would be put into place alongside the U.S. dollar currently in use. The president says this will make it easier for people living abroad to send payments home. About 20% of the country’s GDP comes from money sent home from people living in other countries. That equates to about four billion dollars a year. He also believes it will generate jobs and help people making a living outside the formal economy. The president says right now 70% of Salvadorians do not have bank accounts, so using bitcoin will also bring them into the fold. There are still many questions over how this would work which so far have no answers. But according to experts, would require a major overhaul of the country’s financial system. It’s been a big year for Bitcoin, let’s see if it pays off. Brian Banmiller, CBS News.

About Brian

CBS News Radio national business journalist Brian Banmiller has spent more than 40 years in the news industry, covering business, politics and the economy on television, radio and in print. Currently, his “Banmiller on Business” reports are delivered to an audience of millions nationwide.