Bitcoin’s growing acceptance as legal tender has made waves, particularly within Honduras. The emergence of Prospera, situated in Roatan, as an advocate for Bitcoin’s legitimacy in financial transactions has sparked a notable shift in the region’s economy.
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Bitcoin’s Adoption in Prospera
Located in Roatan, Prospera has taken Bitcoin as legal tender since April 2022. Less than two years after embracing Bitcoin as legal tender, Prospera has officially acknowledged Bitcoin as a unit of account. Now, you can measure the market value of goods and services with it.
This means businesses can set contract prices in bitcoins, even though tax obligations are still calculated in US dollars or Honduran lempiras. This move is seen as a step towards further integrating Bitcoin into the zone.
On January 5th, this breakthrough was spearheaded by Jorge Colindres, the acting governor and tax czar of Próspera Zone for Employment and Economic Development (ZEDE). He declared that this construction would broaden financial and monetary freedom for folks in this area.
Próspera ZEDE set sail on the northern shores of Roatan back in May 2020. This region embraced BTC as legal tender in April 2022—roughly seven months after Honduras’ neighbor, El Salvador, made cryptocurrency the payment method across the entire country in September 2021.
In a message dated January 7th on X, Colindres revealed the secrets, saying the drive was to dish out more financial freedom to the individuals and businesses hustling in this neighborhood.
BTC as Unit of Account: Taxation
As of now, the tax responsibilities for organizations connected to Bitcoin will be measured in BTC for internal accounting purposes but reported by Próspera ZEDE in US dollars or Honduran lempiras.
Once the kinks are ironed out, organizations will report tax duties (and fork over the corresponding amounts) to Próspera ZEDE in BTC.
Jorge Colindres
At the moment, the government can’t pull off the “Final BTC Tax Payment Procedure,” citing technological limitations in their e-management system alongside some external regulatory disruptions.
For those eager to crown BTC as their unit of account, they must file a notice with Prospera’s tax commission within 30 days after the relevant tax period. The official notice should include a link to an approved cryptocurrency exchange, such as Coinbase or Kraken.
While Honduras hasn’t embraced Bitcoin as a legal tender, Prospera’s stride towards adopting it deserves attention. Despite regulatory and technological hurdles, the zone’s inclination towards Bitcoin showcases a burgeoning interest in cryptocurrency, marking a potentially transformative shift in the country’s financial sphere.
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