Montenegro targets cryptocurrencies and gives citizenship to Vitalik Buterin from ETH
2 min read
ETH founder Vitalik Buterin was awarded a citizenship by the small Balkan country of Montenegro, who highlighted that the gesture is a way to show that the nation has an eye on the potential of cryptocurrencies.
According to local portals, citizenship was handed over to Buterin at the suggestion of Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapic. Furthermore, it was an initiative of the Minister of Finance, Milojko Spajic.
“Today, I had the pleasure to give Vitalik Buterin Montenegrin citizenship as a sign of gratitude for everything he has done and will do for our country,” Finance Minister Milojko Spajic said on his official Instagram channel.
Furthermore, Spajic shared a photo of him and Buterin holding a Montenegrin passport.
“He [Buterin]as the most famous name in this industry, will contribute to the promotion of Montenegro and the general development of the cryptocurrency industry in our country,” added Spajic.
As part of efforts to make Montenegro a crypto-friendly nation, the nation recently hosted a cryptocurrency conference titled “Future Now!” which featured Buterin, ETH researcher Vlad Zamfir and law professor Boris Mamlyuk as guest speakers.
Montenegro and cryptocurrency
During the conference, cryptocurrency experts discussed cryptocurrency regulation, government adoption and other topics with Minister Spajic, sharing their views and experiences to help Montenegro in its efforts to become a regional cryptocurrency hub.
The small Balkan country with a population of approximately 620,000 people has recently started to make strides towards the growth of its cryptocurrency industry to make it one of its main economic drivers, in addition to tourism and energy.
The efforts are led by 34-year-old finance minister Spajic. According to the minister, blockchain could account for around 30% of the Montenegrin economy in 3 years.
“I think that in three years, blockchain could account for about 30% of the Montenegrin economy. That is, contributing an additional 1.5 billion to 2 billion euros to the gross domestic product (GDP)”, said Spajic.
