El Salvador Ignites Crypto Revolution

El Salvador's government continues to support Bitcoin adoption and development of the broader network, launching a Bitcoin/lightning developer training program called "CUBO+." Funded by VC firm Fulgur and stablecoin issuer Tether, the advanced Bitcoin engineering program runs for several months and offers credit and potential placement for those qualifying for the inaugural Plan B fellowship.

Launched in Lugano, Switzerland last year, the Plan B initiative was designed to facilitate Bitcoin adoption. The city has already made Bitcoin and USDT de facto legal tender and enabled BTC acceptance with over 150 merchants. El Salvador's Bitcoin Office announced that the Plan B fellowship will train the nation's top computer science students with renowned Bitcoin experts from around the world, though specific lecturers and mentors have not been revealed yet.

Inspired by President Nayib Bukele's CUBO project, which aimed to further regional education through libraries and community centers in impoverished areas, CUBO+ will collaborate with the University of Don Bosco in Soyapango. The area was recently freed from gang control following Bukele's crackdown on gang violence.

El Salvador was the first country to officially recognize Bitcoin as legal tender, with the Central African Republic following suit. The country plans to issue Bitcoin-backed bonds and construct a geothermally powered "Bitcoin City" that uses Bitcoin mining to fund its operations. The Bitcoin Office believes that within a few years, El Salvador will become the global outsourcing hub for open-source, peer-to-peer Bitcoin and Lightning startups.