El Salvador allowed banks to hold bitcoins
According to the head of the Digital Assets Commission (CNAD) Juan Carlos Reyes, financial institutions with capital of at least $50 million can now obtain investment bank status — separate from the license of a regular commercial bank.
Investment banks will be allowed to apply for a license that permits them to offer cryptocurrency financial instruments, including bitcoin, to investor clients with liquid assets over $250,000.
"The institutional architecture of the Salvadoran financial system will be expanded as new, yet regulated and controlled, enhancing the traditional banking system that we all know," said the country's parliament member Dania González.
The government hopes that the new law will increase El Salvador's investment attractiveness as a regional crypto-financial center and strengthen the inflow of capital from investment funds.
