• Bitcoin Lake is a non-profit project in Panajachel, Guatemala that seeks to create a circular economy powered by Bitcoin.
• The project has successfully onboarded more than 60 merchants, 90% of which are unbanked and accept cash and Bitcoin.
• Education projects such as “Mi Primer Bitcoin” have had significant success in teaching kids about Bitcoin.
Overview of Bitcoin Lake
Bitcoin Lake is a non-profit project located in Panajachel, Guatemala that seeks to create a circular economy powered by the cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. The project has successfully onboarded more than 60 merchants, 90% of which are unbanked and accept cash and bitcoin. Additionally, education projects such as “Mi Primer Bitcoin” have had significant success in teaching kids about the potential benefits of using crypto currency.
Impact on Local Community
The initiative to onboard merchants has a significant impact on the local community, particularly due to the fact that approximately 60% of Guatemala’s adult population doesn’t have access to formal financial services. This provides an accessible solution for both banked and unbanked individuals who may not otherwise have access to digital payment solutions.
Initiatives for Support
Bitcoin Lake continues to seek out ways to provide support for its users as well as enhance their experience with the platform. Examples include creating a “Bitcoin Tuk Tuk” (a vehicle commonly used in Panajachel) and launching the “Peer To Peer” boat which is cleverly named after cryptocurrency transactions (see figure one).
Figure One: A bitcoin-themed version of a tuk tuk
Data Analysis
In order to assess progress over the past year, data was collected from the Bitcoin Beach Wallet (see figures two, three & four below). These charts illustrate the flow of bitcoin within the project and indicate considerable growth with 4674 transactions made in 2022 along with 7.39 BTC volume during this same time period.
Figure Two: 4,674 transactions were made in 2022 per Bitcoin Beach Wallet data
Figure Three: 7.39 BTC volume was recorded in 2022 per Bitcoin Beach Wallet data
Conclusion
It’s clear that through initiatives such as “Mi Primer Bitcoin” courses at Centro Educativo Josue school and many other contributions throughout its first year, Bitcoin Lake has been highly successful in providing people with an accessible solution for digital payments while also educating them on how they can benefit from using cryptocurrencies like bitcoin.