$BTC: Crypto influencer says “Salvadoran money is accepted everywhere in Lugano”
On Wednesday (October 26), crypto influencer Stacy Herbert, who co-hosts the YouTube series “MAX & STACY REPORT” (formerly known as “Orange Pill”), said Bitcoin is currently widely accepted as a means of payment in Lugano, Switzerland.
Lugano is “a city and municipality in Switzerland, part of the district of Lugano in the canton of Ticino.” It is “the largest city in both Ticino and Italian-speaking southern Switzerland.” Lugano has a population of around 62,000 and it is the ninth largest city in Switzerland.
Yesterday, Herbert said on Twitter that Bitcoin, which became legal tender in El Salvador on September 7, 2021, is now “accepted everywhere in Lugano.”
On March 3, 2022, CoinDesk reported that “aiming to become the Bitcoin capital of Europe, Lugano, Switzerland, has formed a partnership with stablecoin issuer Tether to establish bitcoin, Tether and Lugano’s own LVGA Points token as essentially legal tender in city.”
The report went on to point out that this decision is more significant than the move by some cantons (such as Zug) to accept tax payments in crypto.
What Lugano seems to want to do is similar to what El Salvador is trying to achieve, i.e. all local businesses routinely accept crypto as payment, but not so far make Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies legal tender (since it is a decision). which can only be taken at the federal level and therefore very unlikely in the near to medium term).
On September 22, 2022, Tether Operations Limited (“Tether”) and the City of Lugano announced that “they will be giving away 1 Bitcoin to Plan B Forum ticket holders at the upcoming conference,” which will take place on September 28-29. October 2022, and that “three lucky forum ticket holders will have the opportunity to win up to 1 Bitcoin (BTC) blockchain voting prize.”
Tether CTO had this to say:
“We are excited to introduce yet another way for attendees to experience the power and potential of Bitcoin while creating an engaging moment during the conference. By giving away one Bitcoin, we hope to inspire more people to join the digital economy. Introduction and education are key pillars of participation, and we believe that we can be a catalyst for long-term and mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency.“
On October 3, 2022, Bitcoin Magazine sent out a tweet with an embedded video showing how easy it was to pay at McDonald’s in Lugano with either Bitcoin or Tether.
On October 4, 2022, Tether CTO tweeted about the upcoming Plan B Forum event in Lugano:
And on October 15, 2022, Ardoino paid for his coffee at a McDonald’s restaurant in Lugano with Bitcoin via the Lightning Network.
Two other famous people in the crypto space who are also currently visiting Lugano are Samson Mow and Adam Back:
