How two digital nomads started the fastest-growing Bitcoin community in El Salvador

Looking at the number of merchants currently accepting Bitcoin in Berlin, you might think this article is about the German capital. Instead, it’s about a small, picturesque mountain village in El Salvador with a population of 20,000.

How we got over 100 merchants accepting Bitcoin in 6 months is an interesting story of persistence, passion, and belief in Bitcoin. It is also the story of a region whose residents were proud of their beautiful city. German cities may have more residents, but the lesser-known Berlin has far more daily Bitcoin users than much better-known cities.

Magic Internet Money

It all starts with Gerardo Linares and his girlfriend Evelyn Lemus, who worked as digital nomads in El Salvador for an American company for 10 years before discovering Bitcoin. Both are from ES, and first heard about Bitcoin in June 2021 when the country designated it as a fiat currency.

Like many of their compatriots, they became curious about Bitcoin after its announcement and began meeting in San Salvador and El Jonte to learn more about this magical internet currency. Like many people, they downloaded a Chivo wallet and amassed $30 worth of bitcoin in September 2021, when the law went into effect. The more they learned about this new global digital currency network that allows you to become your own “decentralized bank,” the more they liked it.

They found that by having Bitcoin as fiat currency in their country, they are attracting many Bitcoin-loving external visitors and tourists to their country, but outside of El Jonte and San Salvador, few natives are adopting Bitcoin. They wanted to change that, so they quit their digital nomad jobs and began a journey that led them to settle in Berlin, a small mountain town about two hours east of San Salvador.

Share the Bitcoin Gospel

After learning more about the impact of Bitcoin and the opportunities it provides for their community, they wanted other native Salvadoran people to understand Bitcoin as well. In the early stages of their journey, they traveled to many small towns in El Salvador and never missed an opportunity to educate students from local schools who wanted to learn about Bitcoin. They eventually teamed up with Mi Primer Bitcoin, a Bitcoin education company originating from El Salvador. “Educating people about Bitcoin is selling Bitcoin,” said Cory Klippsten, CEO of Swan Bitcoin, for several years.

When I asked him how many cities he had visited in the country, Gerardo said “21.” I don’t know if he understood the ironic answer to my question, since many Bitcoin investors consider 21 a special number. One of the places they lectured about Bitcoin was in Berlin. They eventually decided to launch an effort to develop a circular economy in this mountain village. That’s because town officials took great pride in their community and were eager to attract tourists to the area.

Anytime you want people to adopt a new technology, the hardest part is the first few early adopters, and Berlin was no exception. Initially, the two were able to get 17 merchants on board through numerous one-on-one conversations and tutoring. These first Berlin merchants were open to this new payment railway (Lightning Network) because they wanted more tourism. Moreover, another advantage I had in Berlin was that most merchants and shopkeepers were small and had no staff, so I could speak directly to the decision-makers on site. There were no intrusive employees acting as ‘middlemen’. They also had the added advantage of Bitcoin being fiat currency in their country. Since the first 17 traders joined, more locals have joined in recruiting fellow shopkeepers. Gerardo and Evelyn were quick to credit local residents for the increased adoption. However, this is not a success with Bitcoin alone. They organized clean-up projects that supported the local community, transforming the area and making it more attractive to locals and tourists alike.

Many merchants and shopkeepers in Berlin had heard of Bitcoin, and most were aware of its success in attracting tourists to El Zonte, a small surf town 30 minutes from San Salvador and about three hours from Berlin. Another advantage of stores in Berlin is that they only accept cash (El Salvador stopped issuing its own currency in 2001, at which time it made the US dollar its legal tender). There was no way to accept digital payments. This means fewer tourists. Highly likely to visit.

Challenges and Solutions

Some have had Chivo wallets since Bitcoin first launched. Because the wallet needed to receive $30 in Bitcoin from the government. However, they quickly discovered that the Chivo wallet defaulted to generating QR codes for US dollars, not Bitcoin. There was a way to receive Bitcoin into the seller’s Chivo wallet, but it wasn’t the default setup and wasn’t very user-friendly.

They had to find a workaround to allow the Chivo wallet to accept Bitcoin, which made it less than ideal. Most stores are small and do not yet accept any form of electronic payment. Gerardo and Evelyn call Bitcoin “electronic money” or “dinero electronico.” Accepting Bitcoin has become a way for store owners and merchants to enter the digital age for payments, instantly creating a tourist destination for the many Bitcoin users descending on El Salvador after the law was passed in 2021.

At first, success was slow and only one or two store owners were willing to try. And when selling Bitcoin, they would often call Gerardo and ask him to convert the Bitcoin to USD. However, many people watched the price of Bitcoin skyrocket in 2023 and are now much more inclined to hold on to their Bitcoin. Gerardo and Evelyn ended up showing them how to use the Blink wallet because it is much more user-friendly than the Chivo wallet and Blink has a reliable sats feature that allows store owners to avoid Bitcoin’s volatility.

Getting store owners to accept Bitcoin was only half the equation. Because they needed customers and no one in Berlin paid with Bitcoin. The couple began inviting Bitcoin investors from El Zonte and San Salvador to Berlin. As this group of Bitcoin visitors grew in size and frequency, they began organizing lunches and dinners at restaurants that accepted Bitcoin. It didn’t take long for other store owners to notice these large groups going to competitors that accepted Bitcoin.

Gradually and then suddenly…

Gerardo explained that once they reached the tipping point of about 50 stores, the need to recruit owners completely changed. At that point, store owners and owners started coming to them and asking how to accept Bitcoin. “People here in Berlin are crazy about Bitcoin,” he added. Recently, Gerardo and Evelyn opened a small office in Berlin where they teach people about Bitcoin for free and at a low cost to locals who want to learn English.

There is no doubt that the success and buzz generated by El Zonte played a significant role in its adoption. But there are now more than 100 stores and merchants in Berlin that accept Bitcoin, which Gerardo estimates make up about a quarter of the city’s stores and businesses.

It’s ironic that I suggested to Gerardo in an interview that Berlin was “the fastest growing Bitcoin community in El Salvador.” He seemed reticent about making that claim, but it’s true. He made it clear that there is still much more work to be done in educating local people and building a circular economy. He was surprised to learn that he had personally written a 15-page strategic plan to develop his new hometown into a world-class tourist destination. before They started. Their ultimate goal is for the project to become self-sustaining.

They are so effective in putting the city of Berlin on the map that any Bitcoin user who lands in San Salvador can make the following decisions: “Should I go south for 30 minutes to El Zonte, or should I go east for two hours? To Berlin?” Do I want the beach (El Zonte) or the mountains (Berlin)?

In both cases, there will be many merchants and shopkeepers willing to accept your Bitcoin. Meanwhile, tourism continues to grow in El Salvador and the circular economy is emerging in unexpected places.

This is a guest post from .Mark Mariah & Beren Sutton Cleaver. The opinions expressed are solely personal and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.