March 7, 2022
By Sharan Kaur Phillora
Aiming to become Europe’s Bitcoin capital, 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 the city.
Here’s everything you should know:
- The move goes far beyond the actions of a number of other Swiss localities that for some time have been accepting crypto for tax payments. Somewhat similar to El Salvador, Lugano – in addition to allowing crypto for taxes – is aiming to have all of its businesses seamlessly use crypto for everyday transactions (in El Salvador, only bitcoin qualifies).
- Bitcoin, which is the largest cryptocurrency by market cap is already recognised as legal tender in El Salvador. The President, Nayib Bukele is an ardent supporter of cryptocurrency and trades for the country using his mobile phone.
The USDT Tether, which is also recognised in the city of Lugano is a stablecoin, i.e its value remains relatively steady as compared to other cryptocurrencies because it is pegged to the US Dollar. - The third cryptocurrency recognised as de facto legal tender by the country is the LVGA token, which was launched by the city itself. The city of Lugano has taken many strides in the Web3 space. They have built their blockchain called 3Achain, which is already being used by approximately 30 partners from both public and private sectors in Switzerland. The city is also aiming to provide scholarships to over 500 students studying cryptocurrencies and Decentralized Finance (DeFi).
- The mayor also announced at Plan B about the plans for the Bitcoin World Forum to be held in Lugano on Oct. 26-28.
About the author:
Sharan Kaur Phillora’s thirst for knowledge has led her to study many different subjects, including NFTs and Blockchain technology – two emerging technologies that will change how we interact with each other in the future. When she isn’t exploring a new idea or concept, she enjoys reading literary masterpieces.
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