Many things have been happening surrounding Cardano in Argentina. Among them are the Latam Economic Forum, a partnership with a local governor, university events, productive discussions, and an overall positive reception from different sectors of society in promoting blockchain implementation.
It was only this week that Buenos Aires hosted one of the most important events of the year surrounding business and entrepreneurship, attracting Cardano ambassadors, key political and government figures, and leading entrepreneurs in the country. On Monday the Cardano Foundation also entered into a partnership with one of the country’s provinces, reaching an unforeseen milestone in Web3 technology adoption.
These are only two of many events that have taken place in Argentina in the past few months, signifying a continued expansion of the Cardano community in Latin America. The most reverberating piece of news centered on the tenth edition of the Latam Economic Forum. The Latam Cardano Community welcomed for the second time J.J. Siler, Chief of Staff at Input Output Global (IOG) to Argentina. During his first visit, Siler expressed interest in continuing Cardano blockchain implementation in the region, and this second encounter only reinforces his willingness to continue down this road.
Representatives from both organizations attended the forum, which included appearances and speeches from leading government leaders like Argentina’s president Javier Milei, Minister of Economy Luis Caputo, and Patricia Bullrich, Minister of Security. In a recorded interaction between her and Cardano Ambassador Mauro Andreoli, Secretary General Karina Milei showed herself to be open to the possibility of seeking technological investments for the country, and that Cardano establishes itself as a good opportunity to do so.
It was during this symposium that Cardano attracted attention from central figures like Darío Epstein, director of Research for Traders and this year’s forum organizer. Epstein said in an implicit tweet that winked at Cardano that he received a call from a technological company specialized in third-generation blockchain and decentralized governance that wants to install itself in Argentina to continue developing the ecosystem. Epstein’s response to the request was brief: “you will reap your sowing”.
Equally exciting, recent news of blockchain adoption in Argentina was not only centered in Buenos Aires. This week, the Cardano Foundation also announced a new partnership in the country, celebrating a public signing between Rogelio Frigerio, the governor of the northeastern province of Entre Rios, and Rafael Fraga, representative of the Cardano Foundation in Latin America.
Cardano founder, Charles Hoskinson, highlighted in recent tweets the strengthening relationship between Argentina and the Cardano community. Coincidentally, when Hoskinson co-founded Ethereum before Cardano in 2013, he started working regularly with programmers in Argentina and started developing relationships with experts in the country. In fact, when Hoskinson co-founded Cardano in 2015, AtixLabs, one of Cardano's earliest development companies, came from Argentina. Though that lab was eventually purchased by Globant, Hoskinson’s positive involvement in blockchain technology in the country continued to develop. So much so that when the ADA coin was designed, Hoskinson based the letter “A” for ADA on the Argentine Austral, a coin that used to circulate in Argentina in from 1985 until 1992.
Hoskinson’s statement was exemplified by this partnership that leverages Entre Ríos' economic and agricultural dynamism and accelerates blockchain integration and mutual advancement within the region.
In the last three years, the Latam Cardano Community has been making different contributions to grow the ecosystem in Latin America and especially here in Argentina, but it was not until the last few months that everything began to move much more quickly, attracting favorable attention from foreign investors as a result of a generalized welcoming approach toward blockchain technology.
The Latam Cardano Community has also recently been hosting events that promote blockchain adoption in some of the country’s leading universities, connecting students to educational resources. In fact, only a few hours ago, Cardano announced a strategic alliance between the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) and Input Output Global. The university’s Faculty of Law agreed to host the Cardano Constitutional Convention in December 2024 and to explore opportunities for students and professors to start using the Cardano blockchain.
Similarly, legal symposiums were organized at the National University of Mar del Plata (UNMdP), the Argentine Catholic University (UCA), and the National University of La Plata (UNLP). Along the same lines, in April, Cardano Foundation announced a plan to install a blockchain laboratory at the National Technological University with the main mission of building a space that would act as the epicenter of innovation technology.
Blockchain-related events beyond Cardano have also recently taken place, signifying a widespread implementation of blockchain technology. Only this week, MAYZ Protocol presented a proposal sponsored by the Argentina Fintech Chamber in a Project Catalyst category dedicated to global ecosystem growth and the onboarding of more Cardano users.
The Argentina Fintech chamber groups 240 companies in Argentina that directly employ more than 30,000. The chamber brings together companies like Mercado Libre that are revolutionizing financial services through technology and collaborates with institutions like Bitcoin Argentina and the Buenos Aires institute of Technology to develop educational resources on decentralized finance.
Looking to the future
It was only two months ago that Frederik Gregarard, CEO of the Cardano Foundation, shared his thoughts on the Cardano Improvement Proposal, or CIP 1694. It continues to prove a significant step forward in establishing the Cardano Constitution. Now, this December, Buenos Aires will be the stage for a pivotal moment in Cardano's history: the Constitutional Convention. Here, delegates chosen through global constitution workshops will convene with a crucial mission to finalize the Cardano Constitution.
This collaborative effort serves a two-fold purpose. Firstly, it aims to ratify a final version of the Constitution, ensuring its smooth implementation on the blockchain. Secondly, the entire process serves as a powerful demonstration of decentralized governance in action. By collectively agreeing on the Constitution's content, the Cardano community showcases the power and potential of collaborative decision-making.