Should families in El Zonte, El Salvador who've never owned anything pay their mortgage in Bitcoin, or does charity work better when it's free? New Story bet on the mortgage, and 122 families are about to become homeowners because of it. Mike Peterson sits down with Renato Salazar (@HolaIAmRenato) to talk about the project turning some of the most expensive land in El Salvador into first-time property ownership for families who've been living in shacks and on land they don't own.

Renato explains why charging a small mortgage beats giving homes away. Paying every month builds financial education, and once families hit a payment, they start thinking about a motorcycle or a small pupuseria next to the house. The nonprofit has built almost 1,000 homes in El Salvador, and the pattern repeats: homeownership turns new neighbors into a community with its own local economy, and owning land in El Zonte means these families can build generational wealth for the first time.

The payment rails are where maxis will lean in. Families scan a QR code from their phone or a K1 Bitcoin ATM and pay using tools built by Salvadoran companies Tianki and Blink, with WhatsApp notifications and a dashboard that shows New Story who's falling behind so they can help. Many of these families are learning to use email for the first time, so the project is driving a digital transformation in a community that started with voice notes.

Then the conversation turns to legacy banking in Bitcoin country. A banker told Renato that any company with Bitcoin in its name goes to the blacklist, credit card payments stack up to 12% in fees while the Bitcoin page cost cents to run, and you still can't pay payroll taxes in Bitcoin in the nation that made it legal tender. They close with Stay at Bitcoin Beach, the vacation rentals running on a Bitcoin standard anyway: Punta Mango Villas open seven months and orange-pilling curious guests, plus the new Bitcoin Beach Suites in El Zonte, walking distance from the beach and priced for Bitcoiners who'd rather stack sats than splurge.

If this episode made you want to pay a mortgage by scanning a QR code, or at least book a surf trip, subscribe, share it with a friend, and drop a comment. Renato says the tienditas are asking to be paid in Bitcoin now, so the comment section should catch up.


—Bitcoin Beach Team


Learn more about Renato Salazar:
X: https://x.com/HolaIAmRenato
X: https://x.com/NewStoryHomes
Web: https://www.newstoryhomes.org/


Support and follow Bitcoin Beach:
X: https://www.twitter.com/BitcoinBeach
IG: https://www.instagram.com/bitcoinbeach_sv
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@livefrombitcoinbeach
Web: https://www.bitcoinbeach.com

STAY AT BITCOIN BEACH:
https://www.stayatbitcoinbeach.com/punta-mango-villas


Browse through this quick guide to learn more about the episode:
00:00 Intro
00:57 How did Renato Salazar help launch Strike in El Salvador?
03:55 Can you actually build affordable housing on a Bitcoin standard?
06:12 How do families pay a mortgage over Lightning with a QR code?
09:11 What does a Bitcoin mortgage dashboard look like in the real world?
11:46 Does Bitcoin teach financial sovereignty better than charity handouts?
13:30 Is Bitcoin adoption pricing locals out of El Zonte or protecting them?
17:06 Who are the first families in the world paying mortgages in Bitcoin?
21:16 Why does the legacy banking system blacklist Bitcoin businesses in Bitcoin country?
27:49 Why pay 12% to credit card rails when Lightning costs cents?

Live From Bitcoin Beach

Why trust a custodian with your sats? Edgar Borja (@k1elsalvador) breaks down K1's self-custody Bitcoin ATM, on-chain and Lightning buying, and Bitcoin in Bolivia.

Edgar walks through K1's new update, buying Bitcoin on the Lightning Network and on-chain, what's happening with Bitcoin adoption in Bolivia, and what it's like pitching investors 5,000 times. K1's machines now support on-chain and Lightning purchases with full self-custody, cutting out Strike, Blink, and OpenNode entirely. Edgar demos a live on-chain purchase and explains why every K1 transaction is RBF disabled, so once it's broadcast, it's final.

K1 machines now run in 28 countries. That growth reflects real tech innovation in Bitcoin hardware, built for the global market from day one. The team solved for different bill sizes, currencies, and KYC rules in every country they shipped to. Edgar covers how KYC gets configured machine by machine, why K1 stays buy-only for now, and a cash-dispensing module already demoed at the Adopting Bitcoin conference.

Small business owners get a direct pitch here. Edgar walks through the three K1 tiers, Mini, Mini Plus, and Mini Global, plus pricing and why the bill acceptor is the hardest part to build. If you're exploring digital asset management or a new source of business growth, a Bitcoin ATM in a coffee shop or corner store is a low-friction way to start.

Then there's Bolivia. Edgar saw a fiat currency failing in real time, banks offering 6 Bolivianos to the dollar while the street rate hit 10. The government built its own workaround digital payments network just to keep money moving. This is what pulls people toward hard money. Watching their savings shrink every week, people in Cochabamba are turning to Bitcoin.

Edgar also shares K1's education tools: a crayon-and-paper workshop that teaches private keys, and a board game called MerkColor that teaches Merkle trees in under a minute. He talks about pitching investors an estimated 5,000 times on a Bitcoin startup accelerator and reality show, plus his advice for founders: fall in love with the problem you're solving. Hit subscribe, share this with someone who thinks Bitcoin ATMs are just coin machines, and tell us in the comments if you'd trust a machine with your private key.

—Bitcoin Beach Team


Learn more about Edgar Borja:
X: https://x.com/K1ElSalvador
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/k1elsalvador
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/k1elsalvador
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/k1elsalvador/
Web: k1.sv
Email Address: borja@k1.sv

Support and follow Bitcoin Beach:
X: https://www.twitter.com/BitcoinBeach
IG: https://www.instagram.com/bitcoinbeach_sv
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@livefrombitcoinbeach
Web: https://www.bitcoinbeach.com

STAY AT BITCOIN BEACH: https://www.stayatbitcoinbeach.com/punta-mango-villas

Browse through this quick guide to learn more about the episode:
00:00 Intro
01:40 How many countries run K1 Bitcoin ATMs now?
02:07 How does a self-custody Bitcoin ATM let you buy Bitcoin on-chain?
08:49 Can you buy Bitcoin from an ATM without KYC?
13:08 Where are Bitcoin ATMs actually installed in the real world?
16:23 Why are Bolivians turning to Bitcoin as their currency collapses?
25:18 What is it like pitching a Bitcoin company on a startup accelerator reality show?
37:42 How do you teach kids about private keys and self-custody using crayons?
47:31 Which self-custody Bitcoin ATM should you buy and how does shipping work?
57:29 Is Bitcoin still winning in El Salvador after the IMF deal?

Live From Bitcoin Beach

Is El Salvador still Bitcoin country, or did the world move on the moment the IMF deal got signed? Mike sits down with Will Lehr (@thewilliamlehr) from Club Cocal, James (@beefbackbetter) from Beef Back Better, and Ronny Avendano (@ronnyavendano_) from the Bitcoin Hardware Store to talk about the Bitcoin farmers market, El Salvador real estate, self custody, and what life on a Bitcoin standard actually looks like on the ground today.

The conversation starts with the Bitcoin farmers market, which just hit its three year anniversary. What began as a small gathering in El Zonte has grown into a real engine of local commerce, connecting Salvadoran vendors, ranchers, and artisans directly with the people buying from them. No intermediaries or faceless supply chain, just a producer, a buyer, and Bitcoin changing hands. The group traces how it moved from El Zonte to its current home at Club Cocal and why it's become the meeting point for Bitcoiners from all over the country.

From there the talk shifts to why so many people are choosing to build their lives here in the first place. Will calls it a reverse brain drain, skilled people and capital flowing into El Salvador instead of out of it, drawn by a level of freedom and safety they say they can't find at home anymore. Several guests point to what they see as government overreach elsewhere, unrealized capital gains taxes in the Netherlands, wallet registration requirements in the EU, Bitcoin ATMs disappearing in Canada, as the exact pressure pushing people toward a country that's betting the other direction.

That bet shows up clearest in El Salvador real estate. Will walks through what he calls a Bitcoin floor underneath land values here, and makes the case that El Zonte now holds some of the most expensive property per square foot in the entire country. Whether that's a sign of a healthy market or a bubble waiting to pop is left for the viewer to decide, but the group is clear about where they're placing their own money.

The episode closes on something bigger than any single topic, the idea that self custody and freedom tech aren't just Bitcoin concepts, they're a full lifestyle. Ronny connects owning your own keys to owning your own food source, your own health, your own decisions, and the group makes the case that El Salvador is quietly becoming a real world test case for hyper-bitcoinization, one farmers market, one hardware store, and one ranch at a time.

Drop a comment and tell us if you think El Salvador is still worth the bet.

Subscribe if you want more of these conversations, and share it with the friend who keeps asking if the Bitcoin country story is over.

—Bitcoin Beach Team

Learn more about the guests:
Will Lehr — Club Cocal
X (personal): x.com/thewilliamlehr
X (Club Cocal): x.com/ClubCocal
X (Unbound Assets): x.com/UnboundAssets
Instagram: instagram.com/club.cocal
Web: clubcocal.com
Web: unboundassets.com

James — Beef Back Better & Bitcoin Farmer Market
X: x.com/beefbackbetter
X: x.com/btcfarmersmrkt
Instagram: instagram.com/beefbackbettersv
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bitcoinfarmersmarket
Website: beefbackbetter.com
Website: bitcoinfarmersmarket.org
Linktree: linktr.ee/beefbackbetter
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/bitcoinfarmersmarket
Github: github.com/sovITxyz/bitcoinfarmersmarket.org

Ronny Avendano — Bitcoin Hardware Store
X (personal): x.com/ronnyavendano_
X (store): x.com/tbhs_sv
Web: tbhs.sv

Support and follow Bitcoin Beach:
X: https://www.twitter.com/BitcoinBeach
IG: https://www.instagram.com/bitcoinbeach_sv
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@livefrombitcoinbeach
Web: https://www.bitcoinbeach.com

STAY AT BITCOIN BEACH: https://www.stayatbitcoinbeach.com/punta-mango-villas

Browse through this quick guide to learn more about the episode:
00:00 Intro
02:31 History of the Bitcoin farmers market in El Salvador
08:26 Club Cocal, Beef Back Better, and Bitcoin Hardware Store, who runs them
16:07 What it's like running a Bitcoin only hardware store in El Zonte
19:34 How much has El Zonte changed since Bitcoin arrived
22:15 Is El Salvador still Bitcoin country after the IMF deal
27:38 How food sovereignty connects to Bitcoin's sovereignty philosophy
30:53 Carnivore diet results, what actually changes when you go full meat
40:38 Is El Salvador real estate in a bubble, or is there a Bitcoin floor
50:00 What's next for the Bitcoin farmers market and the Bitcoin Histórico rodeo

Live From Bitcoin Beach