By Alicia Maher
Panama lawmakers have approved the proposed bill to regulate digital asset use. However, the bill still needs to be signed by the president before it becomes law. Once this bill becomes law, Panamanians can use any crypto to settle their taxes and civil debts.
Making Panama The Center Of Innovative Technology
The legislature passed the bill after it passed the final debate on Thursday. Following the approval, the bill’s main proponent, Gabriel Silva, opined that the bill would make Panama an attractive destination for innovative technology among Latin American countries.
Panama would hope that the passing of this law will have the same effect as their neighboring nation, El Salvador, when it adopted BTC as a legal tender. The content of Panama’s new policy is similar to that of El Salvador. Since adopting BTC as a legal tender, El Salvador has become a favorite destination for tourists and investments.
Section 8 of Panama’s new bill reads, “any merchant in the republic of Panama can accept crypto payments either directly or via third-party payment solutions. They can also settle their tax obligations through digital assets.” However, a future policy will specify which cryptos will be used for these purposes.
Nonetheless, section 7 of the bill reveals that the specific crypto that can be used for tax settlement and other payment purposes will be agreed by the parties involved so long such cryptos are not prohibited in the Republic of Panama. Some legally accepted cryptos include BTC, ETH, XRP, LTC, XDC, EGLD, XLM, IOTA, and ALGO.
Also, the nation’s rule on territorial tax states that capital gains tax on cryptos will have zero charges. A simple interpretation that can be given to this bill is that Panama has adopted crypto (including BTC) as a legal tender.
Silva Clarifies The Difference Between Panama And El Salvador’s Crypto Bill
But when Gabriel Silva was interviewed on Radio Panama on April 25, he remarked that the bill and El Salvador’s bill are not the same. He said one remarkable difference between the two nations’ policies is that Panama isn’t forcing any merchant or business owner to accept cryptos; it is optional.
In contrast, El Salvador doesn’t make it optional for business owners to accept BTC. He added that “El Salvador adopted only BTC as a legal tender, while Panama’s bill clarified that any crypto is adopted for payment settlement purposes.” “We are not limiting the use of crypto adoption to BTC alone. It makes no sense because BTC isn’t the only crypto.,” Silva added.
BTC Regulatory Adoption Is Spreading Across Developing Economies
This week saw increased regulatory adoption for crypto among developing economies. On Wednesday, the Central African Republic officially announced that it had made BTC a legal tender. Also, on Wednesday, brazil lawmakers approved a crypto regulation bill. At the same time, Cuba’s apex bank announced that virtual asset providers (VASPs) could start processing their operational licenses with the appropriate government agencies.