Canadian Prime Minister Candidate Frees Citizens To Use Bitcoin As Legal Money

Canadian Prime Minister candidate allows Canadians to use Bitcoin as legal money. (Toronto Star)

JAKARTA – Canada's Conservative Party Prime Minister candidate, Pierre Poilievre, made a surprising statement by allowing citizens of the country to use Bitcoin as legal money. This is known through a video uploaded by the BITCOIN YouTube channel on March 29.

Poilivre said Canadians need "more financial freedom". In the video, Poilivre is seen standing with several people and expressing his opinion in front of approximately 100 people in a local restaurant. “That includes the freedom to own and use cryptocurrencies, tokens, smart contracts, and decentralized finance,” he added.

“People should have the freedom to choose other money. If the government is going to misuse our cash, we should have the freedom to use other, higher quality cash,” said Poilivre.

The Canadian government itself in early 2022 led by Liberal Prime minister Justin Trudeau who took radical steps against crypto in response to the Freedom Convoy protests that took place in Ontario.

In January and February, Canadian officials froze protesters' bank accounts and attempted to block all donations to truck drivers, including those made in crypto.

Canada Is Not Crypto-Friendly

The Executive Director of the Canadian Blockchain Consortium (CBC) Koleya Karringten said in an interview that currently, the Liberal government is creating a hostile environment for crypto. This is due to a lack of knowledge, understanding, and clarity of regulations.

“It is very important to have a strong advocacy position to educate the government about blockchain. Once they see the level of tax revenue, they will know that this is not an industry for criminals, this is an industry for innovation,” Karringten said.

Furthermore, Karringten believes that there are currently more crypto holders following the circumstances caused by Prime Minister Trudeau implementing the Emergency Act in February.

Despite his zeal, Poilivre's support of cryptocurrencies may be confined to a small group of Canadians. Because, in October 2021, research firm Ipsos said that only about 14 percent of Canadians over the age of 18 own cryptocurrencies. However, this figure includes a significant increase compared to 2013 when only 3 percent of Canadians own crypto.

Apparently, the prospects for crypto adoption in Canada look bright, as Ipsos also found that about 25 percent of Canadian adults are considering buying crypto for the next few years.