Welcome to Latam Insights, a compendium of Latin America’s most relevant crypto and economic news from the past week. In this issue, we discuss the conversation between President-Elect Donald Trump and Argentine President Javier Milei, the thousands of job positions axed by Milei’s Deep Chainsaw operation, and Chilean authorities’ pushback on World’s domiciliary eye-scanning pilot.
Latam Insights: Trump and Milei Parley, Deep Chainsaw Cuts Into Argentine State
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El Salvador Leader and Trump Discuss High Stakes: Dangerous Past and Future Strategy
El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele shared details of his phone conversation with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on social media platform X on Thursday, noting a range of topics that touch on their mutual interests and political agendas. Bukele remarked:
I congratulated him on his sweeping victory on Tuesday, and we discussed the strong mandate he received from the American people and the significance his election holds for the world.
“We had an interesting conversation about his podcast strategy, the bullet that nearly killed him, the incredible people around him, the sometimes harmful effects of U.S. aid funds, Soros-backed NGOs [non-governmental organizations], and our shared commitment to tackling the challenges ahead,” the Salvadoran leader added.
Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 5, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump’s victory marks his return to the White House after previously serving as president.
Milei’s ‘Deep Chainsaw’ Trims Thousands of Jobs in Argentina
Deep Chainsaw, the name given to President Milei’s plan to trim the bureaucratic excesses in state institutions, recently reached a milestone in savings for the country. Milei celebrated that the program eliminated over 33,000 job positions. Argentina’s Minister of State Transformation and Deregulation, Federico Sturzenegger, had reported this previously, stating that “the only sustainable way to reduce the tax burden is by reducing public spending. President Javier Milei’s entire team is working towards this.” In addition, over 10,000 might reach retirement status before 2025, and 40,000 temporary contracts are poised to end this year. Milei’s anti-bureaucracy operation has affected essential institutions, including the national coin house and the state’s tax enforcer, with more state companies open to privatization.
Chilean Authorities Probe World’s Domiciliary Eye Scanning Activities Pilot
World, the eye-scanning-based identification project, is facing backlash from Chilean authorities as the company seeks to expand its user base by adopting a new integration modality. Last month, as the company rebranded from Worldcoin to World, it revealed that it would start developing domiciliary eye-scanning activities, taking the orb to citizens’ homes in Latam.
Orbs, as World calls them, are devices allowing users to get verified in the system, and a new design would ease the task of carrying them around for this new pilot program. The new modality aimed at Latam markets worried the consumer protection agency in Chile, SERNAC, which has moved to act against World before courts, seeking to suspend the company’s activities in Chile.
In the same way, SERNAC inquired about the activities that Rappi, the urban transportation company that partnered with World to carry these tasks, would develop in the country. The delivery platform, with over 300,000 registered drivers in the region, would help massify World’s penetration. Traditionally, users had to move to the points where an orb was available.
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