Sitiveni Rabuka, a pro-Bitcoin leader has been sworn in as Fiji’s new Prime Minister, paving the way for BTC adoption as a legal tender.
According to a former member of the Tongan parliament named Lord Fusitu’a, Rabuka was given a step-by-step explanation of “how Fiji may implement BTC legal tender like Tonga” and that two “Legal Tender Bills for the Pacific in 2023” may be introduced.
In addition, Tonga anticipated that Fiji would approve legislation making Bitcoin legal tender as early as February 2023.
The Pacific Islands nation was in the throes of a worsening political crisis before to electing the new PM. This is due to the fact that the previous Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama refused to concede.
Until Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka struck an agreement with other opposition parties on creating a new coalition government.
Rabuka overthrew the government in Fiji’s first coup in 1987; Bainimarama did so in a coup in 2006. While the present leader kept a close relationship with China, Rabuka is anticipated to pursue closer relationships with Australia and New Zealand, both of which are friends of the United States.
Apart from that, the nation also faced significant development challenges, including high poverty rates, limited access to financial services, and energy dependence on fossil fuels.
This presents Bitcoin with numerous opportunities to enhance financial inclusion in the developing country.
However, in the past year alone, two nations have recognized Bitcoin as a legitimate payment method.
Who is the next to adopt Bitcoin as a legal currency?
El Salvador was the first nation in the world to accept this cryptocurrency in addition to the U.S. dollar as legal tender back in June 2021.
By April 2022, the Central African Republic had adopted legislation that treated Bitcoin on an equal footing with its native Central African franc, following El Salvador’s example.
Perhaps Nigeria will be the next country to accept Bitcoin as legal money. But, this isn’t just a theory.
Babangida Ibrahim, a retired Nigerian Army general, and politician, recently asserted that the nation will probably enact a law making the usage of Bitcoin lawful in the near future.
If Ibrahim is right, it would be necessary to change the 2007 Investment and Securities Act so that Bitcoin may be used as legal capital for investments.