Bali Tourists Suprised As Crypto Payments Prohibited

0

Last Updated on 6 November 2023 by CryptoTips.eu

The government of Indonesia is of course aware of how much money exchanges hands on the popular holiday island of Bali. With all those tourists who have arrived again since the lifting of the covid rules in 2022, business is booming as usual. However, if the government wants to collect taxes, all those crypto payments that the merchants have also started to allow there are not very convenient, especially with the many digital nomads who have been there for a while now.

And so the governor of Bali, Wayan Koster, issued a ban on crypto payments this weekend, much to the surprise of the tourists present.

Advertentie.

Rupiah

During the covid-19 pandemic, things looked bad for Asian tourism hotspots like Bali. Europeans could no longer come and the few Asian tourists (especially Australians) who were still able to take flights, first had to stay in isolation for some time. The tourism sector was going through tough times.

Ever since last year, all those worries seemed to be over and tourists were flocking to the beaches of Bali again. Most of them come from Australia, India, Singapore, United Kingdom, United States, Malaysia, Germany, Russia, South Korea and China.

Among them are also many young people, the so-called digital nomads (tech workers who can work from anywhere in the world) and crypto enthusiasts who prefer not to convert their money into the local currency, the Indonesian rupiah. After all, many smaller hotels and local businesses accept payments in Bitcoin, which is why there was a whole report about the surging popularity of crypto in Bali in the local newspaper Kompas last week.

That article ended up in the office of the Governor, who was not very happy with it, we think. During an interview with local media at the Bali tourism development press conference this weekend, Governor Wayan Koster said:

Foreign tourists who behave inappropriately, do activities that are not allowed in their visa permit, use crypto as a means of payment, and violate other provisions will be dealt with firmly.

Strict actions range from deportation, administrative sanctions, criminal penalties, closure of business premises, and other tough sanctions.

Foreign tourists on the island were very surprised indeed.

Jeroen Kok

Jeroen is one of the lead copywriters on Cryptotips.eu and discusses all recent events in the crypto market. This includes news updates, but also price analyzes and more. He developed his passion for cryptocurrency during the bull run in 2017. He has learned a lot since then. The combination of cryptocurrency and creative writing is perfect for Jeroen and an excellent way to share his knowledge with a wide audience. Find me on LinkedIn / [email protected]
View all posts