Hodl On: Did the Central African Republic actually vote to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender? Not quite, a correction to the misleading Forbes Macau piece

Hopefully the Bitcoin Bros of Bangui didn't go too big with the celebrations on the news that the National Assembly had voted to make Bitcoin legal tender in the Central African Republic. Following El Salvador and becoming the first country in Africa to make the move this was looking like a big deal. Forbes Macau lit the fuse for the rocket to the moon with its report saying as much.?First African Country Adopts Bitcoin Currency

Miami on the Ubangi?

Well not so fast, the truth it appears, as always, is a tad more nuanced and murky. The National Assembly did in fact vote unanimously on a bill related to Bitcoin use, but this bill while still quite opaque doesn't appear to actually make Bitcoin a standard in the same way El Salvador did. For a start it isn't necessarily Bitcoin specific and refers more generally to the use of "cryptocurrency" in the financial system.?CAR adopts law on cryptocurrencies?Which isn't nearly as sexy as the initial reports that grabbed all the attention. At one point Bangui seemed poised to become a"New Miami" on the Ubangi but the details take the fizzle out of the Cristal to a degree.?Bill governing cryptocurrency passed unanimously

So what does this mean for CAR and when exactly will the Lambos be arriving? For a country still heavily reliant on the French for its currency's regulation this would seem like an attempt to gain some autonomy in that regard. While also offering alternative ways to move funds into and out of CAR and CFA francs with fewer complications. Which sounds like a positive for individuals but which ones benefit the most might not be for the best. With rumors of Russia using crypto to evade its sanctions and the already shadowy world of geo-economics that surrounds CAR, crypto will only muddy the waters further, if that's even possible.