El Salvador

April 24, 2025

El regulator de activos digitales de El Salvador, la Comisión Nacional de Activos Digitales (CNAD), está buscando establecer un “sandbox” regulatorio transfronterizo con la Comisión de Valores y Bolsa de los...

“Queremos crear colaboración internacional”, dijo Juan Carlos Reyes, presidente de la CNAD, en una entrevista con The Parrot Press. “Nuestro mensaje principal es que los activos digitales no tienen barreras geográficas. La colaboración con los reguladores no debería tener barreras internacionales tampoco”.

El Salvador se encuentra en una situación única en la que no contaba con instituciones financieras sólidas, ni siquiera con un ecosistema existente de desarrolladores, cuando el presidente Nayib Bukele hizo que el bitcoin fuera de curso legal en 2021. Eso significa que la CNAD pudo comenzar desde cero cuando introdujo un marco normativo adaptado a las criptomonedas.

Casi dos años después de que Reyes se hiciera cargo de la agencia, el avanzado marco regulador de El Salvador ha incentivado a gigantes de las criptomonedas como Tether, Bitfinex y Binance a abrir operaciones en el país.

La idea, según Reyes, es que la SEC de EE. UU. ahora utilice a El Salvador como un caso de estudio real y en vivo para evaluar enfoques regulatorios simplificados para los activos digitales, es decir, para que la SEC aprenda de la experiencia de El Salvador a medida que redefine su propio marco regulatorio en un mundo posterior a Gensler.

El programa piloto propuesto por la CNAD involucra diferentes escenarios: un corredor de finanzas tradicionales con licencia en EE. UU. que obtiene una licencia de activos digitales bajo regulaciones de la CNAD, y el desarrollo de dos ofertas de tokenización a pequeña escala facilitadas por una empresa de tokenización con licencia de la CNAD. Cada escenario estaría limitado a $10,000.

Estas iniciativas respaldarían algunos de los objetivos establecidos por la comisionada de la SEC, Hester Peirce, en febrero, cuando escribió que el Grupo de Trabajo de Criptomonedas de la SEC, que ahora lidera, adoptaría un enfoque muy diferente hacia la regulación de las criptomonedas de aquí en adelante.

“La CNAD realmente examinó [el documento de Peirce] con un ojo crítico sobre cómo podemos ayudar”, dijo Erica Perkin, propietaria de The Perkin Law Firm y miembro del grupo asesor de la CNAD, a The Parrot Press. “Estamos aquí. Hay datos que [la SEC] quizás quiera recopilar. Es difícil recopilar en EE. UU. … Hemos construido un marco lo suficientemente ágil como para abordar los problemas exactos que la SEC está investigando, y estamos aquí para ayudar y recopilar información sobre cómo podemos hacerlo de la mejor manera”.

La CNAD se reunió con el Grupo de Trabajo de Criptomonedas de la SEC el 22 de abril para discutir la iniciativa. La reunión fue constructiva, según Reyes y Perkin. “Hicieron buenas preguntas”, dijo Perkin. “Están en una fase de recopilación de información. Estaban comprometidos y abiertos a la discusión”.

Reyes ya ha firmado acuerdos de cooperación regulatoria con países como Argentina y Paraguay. En su opinión, la SEC parece estar a la vanguardia en cuanto a comprender las necesidades regulatorias de los activos digitales, mientras que los reguladores en otras jurisdicciones han tendido a ver la regulación cripto desde una perspectiva de finanzas tradicionales.

“La calidad de las personas que conforman el Grupo de Trabajo de Criptomonedas de la SEC es bastante impresionante. Lo entienden. Comprenden la tecnología”, dijo Reyes. “Pudimos tener discusiones precisas sobre lo que se necesita para regular la tecnología … Fue muy refrescante”.

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February 4, 2025

Geo Politics / Safety & Security

El Salvador Offers U.S. an Opportunity to Outsource Its Prison System

Tags:El Salvador United States

In a surprising and bold move, the President of El Salvador has extended an offer to the United States: outsource a portion of its prison system to El Salvador in exchange...

In a surprising and bold move, the President of El Salvador has extended an offer to the United States: outsource a portion of its prison system to El Salvador in exchange for a fee. The proposal suggests that El Salvador’s state-of-the-art Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT)—one of the world’s largest and most secure mega-prisons—could house convicted criminals from the U.S., including U.S. citizens, at a significantly lower cost than maintaining them in American prisons.

A Cost-Effective Solution for the U.S.

The United States has long struggled with overcrowding, high costs, and inefficiencies in its prison system. As of recent estimates, the U.S. spends tens of thousands of dollars per inmate annually, creating a heavy financial burden on federal and state governments. El Salvador’s offer presents a potential alternative—transferring convicted criminals to CECOT for a fee that would be relatively low for the U.S. but financially impactful for El Salvador.

What Makes El Salvador’s Mega-Prison Unique?

CECOT, which was inaugurated in 2023, has gained international attention for its high-security measures, strict conditions, and capacity to hold up to 40,000 inmates. Built primarily to house gang members and organized crime offenders, the facility boasts cutting-edge surveillance systems, around-the-clock security, and extreme measures to prevent escape or internal violence.

By leveraging this infrastructure, El Salvador hopes to generate revenue while maintaining the sustainability of its prison system, which has expanded dramatically due to the country’s aggressive crackdown on crime.

Potential Controversies and Legal Hurdles

While the proposal may appear beneficial from a financial standpoint, it raises significant legal, ethical, and political concerns. Would the U.S. Constitution allow for American citizens to serve their sentences in foreign prisons? How would human rights organizations react, given past criticisms of El Salvador’s harsh prison conditions? And would there be bipartisan political support for outsourcing a core part of the American criminal justice system?

Moreover, prisoner rehabilitation and reintegration efforts in the U.S. differ significantly from El Salvador’s punitive, high-discipline approach, leading to concerns about whether inmates would receive fair treatment and access to rehabilitation programs.

A Precedent for International Prison Outsourcing?

Although this idea may seem radical, prison outsourcing is not unprecedented. Countries such as Norway have previously rented prison space from the Netherlands, and the U.S. itself has used private prisons and even immigration detention outsourcing. However, outsourcing to a foreign nation with a vastly different judicial and correctional system would be uncharted territory for the U.S.

What Comes Next?

It remains to be seen whether the U.S. government will formally consider or respond to this proposal. If accepted, it could mark a historic shift in international prison management—one with profound implications for both nations.

For now, El Salvador has made its offer clear: it is willing to take in convicted criminals from the United States in exchange for a fee that could help sustain its own correctional system. Whether Washington will entertain this proposal or dismiss it as an impractical and controversial idea remains to be seen.

Would you support outsourcing U.S. inmates to El Salvador? Let us know your thoughts.

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January 30, 2025

Geo Politics / Tech

El Salvador’s Congress Approves Bitcoin Law Amendment to Comply with IMF Deal

Tags:bitcoin El Salvador

In a swift legislative move, El Salvador’s Congress has reportedly approved amendments to its Bitcoin laws in order to align with the terms of an agreement with the International Monetary Fund...

In a swift legislative move, El Salvador’s Congress has reportedly approved amendments to its Bitcoin laws in order to align with the terms of an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This development marks a significant step in the country’s ongoing efforts to integrate Bitcoin into its financial system while adhering to international financial agreements.

The ruling party lawmaker, Elisa Rosales, emphasized that the amendment was necessary to ensure Bitcoin’s “permanence as legal tender” in El Salvador. The adjustment aims to refine the legal framework surrounding Bitcoin to ensure its continued recognition as a legitimate currency within the country. This step is also viewed as a way to smooth out practical issues that have emerged since Bitcoin was adopted as legal tender in 2021.

The law amendment seeks to clarify and streamline the implementation of Bitcoin as a payment method, addressing practical challenges that have surfaced in the adoption process. Rosales noted that while Bitcoin’s introduction was a bold and innovative move by the government, there were technical and regulatory challenges that needed to be resolved to facilitate its broader use in everyday transactions.

The IMF deal has played a significant role in shaping this shift in policy. El Salvador has faced considerable pressure from the IMF and other international financial institutions to adopt certain fiscal and monetary policies in exchange for financial assistance and cooperation. These amendments are seen as part of the country’s efforts to meet the IMF’s concerns, particularly regarding financial stability and the integration of cryptocurrencies into traditional economic frameworks.

Since El Salvador became the first country to make Bitcoin legal tender, the decision has garnered significant attention globally. While Bitcoin’s adoption has had both supporters and critics, the move has placed El Salvador at the forefront of global cryptocurrency discussions. The amendments are likely to ease tensions between the government and international financial bodies, providing a path for smoother cooperation going forward.

Critics of the original Bitcoin law, including some members of the international financial community, have expressed concerns about the risks associated with Bitcoin’s price volatility, its potential to destabilize the national economy, and the challenges faced by citizens in using Bitcoin for daily transactions. The government’s recent adjustments aim to mitigate these concerns while still maintaining Bitcoin’s central role in the country’s economy.

This development signals that while Bitcoin remains firmly embedded in El Salvador’s economic strategy, the government is taking steps to ensure the cryptocurrency is integrated more pragmatically into the country’s financial system. The situation will continue to evolve as El Salvador works to balance innovation with the realities of its financial commitments and global relationships.

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