Alejandra Guajardo, an El Salvadorean model and actress, joined the Miss Universe 2022 pageant in New Orleans with a stunning Bitcoin-themed fancy dress.
She posted on Instagram on 12 January a photo of walking down the stage with a massive colón, a former currency of the nation. The beauty contestant also decorated the outfit with cocoa beans and held a large staff with a bitcoin at its top.
In the video, the announcer said: “This look represents El Salvador’s history of currency. For a long time, cocoa was used, and then the colón, until it was replaced by the U.S. dollar. In 2021, El Salvador became the first country in the world to use Bitcoin as legal tender. You don’t need a sash to walk around dressed as cash.”
Bitcoin: The People’s Currency?
El Salvadorean plastics sculptor Francisco Guerrero designed the costume, just a year after El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as a sovereign token. Despite this, national president Nayib Bukele was rumoured to have promoted the cryptocurrency to onlookers.
In January last year, Bukele tweeted his support for BTC after purchasing several rounds of the digital coin after the country adopted it for national use in 2021.
The news comes after El Salvador lost the top-third spot in the world for cryptocurrency ATMs after Australia and Poland knocked the country to 5th place. Currently, the latter two hold the third and fourth positions, respectively.
El Salvadorean lawmakers recently approved a bill to outline plans for bonds using the digital asset. Many hope to pay off sovereign debt and use volcanic geothermal energy to mine cryptocurrencies, similar to Tonga and Fiji’s respective government Bitcoin ambitions.
