Bitcoin is for people in need, while the rest of us need to learn: Bitcoin Panel Surfing.

Bitcoin (BTC) is available for those who need it the most; the remainder may require some time to understand. This statement echoed across the casino conference hall on August 26 during a session at Surfin Bitcoin, a Bitcoin-only conference in Biarritz, France.

Panelists Ben Perrin, a Bitcoin Youtuber; Ernesto Hernandez, a Salvadoran business expert; and Carol from the prominent Brazilian YouTube channel “Area Bitcoin” handled a difficult subject: “Victims of the Banking System Around the World: Inflation, Censorship.” Bitcoin’s function in such testing settings has been called into doubt.

Hall, Perrin, Carol, and Hernandez (from left):
In order to address the matter, the panelists shared their experiences, evidence, and stories from their different countries: Perrin from Canada, Hernandez from El Salvador, and Carol from Brazil. Hernandez, for example, was keen to point out that Bitcoin is not a panacea in El Salvador.

“Let’s not forget that 8 out of 10 Salvadorans were unbanked,” he said of the small Central American country’s introduction of the “Ley Bitcoin” in 2021. “It’s a huge leap for folks to purchase a house—or even groceries,” if they don’t grasp how banking or financial services function.

Furthermore, when it was originally introduced, the Chivo app, which was endorsed by the government, received considerable criticism and even violence from demonstrators. The government app is still under investigation. During the Q&A session, Rikki, a Bitcoin podcaster who spent 45 days living solely on Bitcoin with his spouse Laura, asked Hernandez about Bitcoin remittances to El Salvador.

Rikki quoted a paper on El Salvador and remittances, which, although encouraging, demonstrates that Bitcoin is severely underutilized for transfer payments. Ernesto noted that overseas investors and Bitcoin fans are presently showing interest in El Salvador, as opposed to Salvadoran employees living abroad bringing money home. The true problem, however, is educating Salvadorans on the benefits of adopting Bitcoin as a transfer mechanism.

Nonetheless, he smiled and said it’s “exciting” to witness Salvadorans who had never used financial services before now utilize Bitcoin on the Chivo app to save and spend money. Furthermore, prior to La Ley Bitcoin, the SEO terms “invest in El Salvador” did not exist. Bitcoin has really placed the nation on the map and, by extension, on the internet, he stated.

Banking ‘victims’
Carol, whose YouTube channel just became a Bitcoin-only channel, emphasized that central banks have a long history of victimizing Brazilians. Brazil has had “nine currencies in the past hundred years, eight of which expired due to hyperinflation caused by money printing and mismanagement.” Furthermore, despite the fact that the Real, Brazil’s current national currency, has been in circulation for 27 years, it “has already devalued by 86%.” Bitcoin is one approach to avoid such a system.

The “biggest demonstrations in Canadian history,” the Canada trucker protests, also known as the “freedom convoy,” were mentioned by Ben Perrin. He demonstrated how the financial system might sometimes target certain persons or groups. He also hinted at collaboration between the financial sector and governments:

“The government actively subsidizes our media in Canada.” Every year, they get billions of dollars. It helps if you have a certain message you want to get out and you are the ones funding the individuals in charge of spreading that message.”
On balance, he said that the financial system doesn’t always work—and it’s not the fault of a person or an unintended result. In El Salvador, for example, Hernandez revealed that banks had just seven days to integrate Bitcoin into their new system—no it’s surprise, Ernesto noted, that the system sometimes makes errors.

During bear markets
On a more positive note, Perrin said that bad markets are for building, and that there would be some wonderful invention in 2022. Despite this, Bitcoin exists in a bubble that the rest of the world is unaware of or ignores. Carol also said that Bitcoin gets “attacked” the most during bear markets, but this also allows Bitcoin to breathe and serves as a lesson to consumers to take their time:

“The fiat mentality is a short-term mentality. Everything is fast and must be done today, tomorrow, and instantaneously. Fiat is exclusive, but anybody can use Bitcoin. When you start thinking about Bitcoin, you start thinking about all of your life decisions.”
Carol contrasted the government’s manipulation of money to the manipulation of people’s brains. Even in high-inflationary contexts, such as her native Brazil, Bitcoin adoption remains modest. The problem for instructors like herself, Perrin, and Hernandez is to convince people that fiat money has no basis.

Finally, Hernandez reiterated that education remains the most crucial component of Bitcoin adoption, although technology remains a hurdle. “If you grasp a knife on the other side, you will slash your hand,” he says. You must learn how to utilize the knife.

He claimed that little seeds of acceptance are already blossoming throughout the poor globe, citing Machankura, a startup that provides Bitcoin via Lightning to folks in Africa who do not have internet access. Famous supporters of the organisation include Jack Dorsey.