Brazilian Lawmaker Proposes Integration Of Crypto Payment Option For Workers

As crypto adoption steadily increases, more and more institutions are considering it as a payment option for employees.

A member of Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies, Luizão Goulart, proposed a bill to provide public and private sector workers with a crypto payment option. This means that Brazilian workers would have the option to request their pay in cryptocurrencies.

This proposal comes amidst an ongoing regulatory debate in Brazil surrounding Bitcoin.

The Proposed Crypto Payment Bill

According to the proposal, workers may be partially and optionally compensated for their work in crypto. He also suggested that this system be slowly integrated.

The optional nature of the proposal is unlike El Salvador’s approach. Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele’s article 7 mandated all businesses to accept Bitcoin as payment, even though he repeatedly said that using Bitcoin is optional.

Related Reading | From The Ground: The “Bitcoin In El Salvador” Documentary, What Did We Learn?

The bill also states that workers and their employers mutually agree before cryptocurrency payments commence. Additionally, employees get to choose the percentage of their salary they want to receive in crypto.

“The limits of the percentage of payment (remuneration) in cryptocurrencies will be of the worker’s free choice. Any imposition by the employer will be prohibited.”

Goulart further explains that the adaptation is necessary for what he calls “the fourth digital revolution.” He points out the evolution of finance — from a barter system to fiat currencies to crypto. He argues that Bitcoin is the “antithesis of the current global financial system.”

Total crypto market at $2.745 Trillion | Source: Crypto Total Market Cap from TradingView.com

Emphasizing the importance of his proposal, the deputy further stated, “It is only up to us to adapt, reinvent and progress along this wonderful path of Modernity in order to establish a Global Economy that facilitates the daily lives of citizens and, above all, provides a good quality of life for all.”

If signed into law, Goulart’s bill will help to resolve the cash problem of the Federal, State, and Municipal governments. The law will take effect 90 days from the date of approval.

Recent data shows that Brazilian citizens may just be open to the idea. In a survey from September, 48% of the respondents were in favor of Bitcoin as the official currency.

Digital Assets Regulation In Brazil

In the past couple of weeks, there has been speculation around Bitcoin regulation in Brazil. The Chamber of Deputies’ Special Committee recently approved Bitcoin regulation. Because of this, many people assumed that the country would follow El Salvador and make bitcoin a legal tender.

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However, contrary to the rumors, the bill does not seek to make bitcoin legal tender in Brazil. The Brazilian “virtual asset” bill seeks to define virtual assets and virtual asset services providers and increase investor protection by increasing regulation.

The Central Bank of Brazil has also said that it is more focused on developing its CBDC, the digital Real. And that it has no intention of making bitcoin legal tender in the country.

Featured image by CoinMarketCap, Chart from TradingView.com