City of Vancouver to probe investing in Bitcoin, accepting it as payment [Video]

Vancouver city council has voted to explore ways to make the municipality a “Bitcoin-friendly city.”

The motion approved Wednesday won’t mean the city is investing or accepting payment in cryptocurrency any time soon, but will instead direct staff to look into those possibilities.

The proposal passed along party lines with Mayor Ken Sim, who proposed the initiative, and his ABC Vancouver councillors in support, and two Green councillors opposed.

Thirty-four people signed up to speak to the motion, many of them enthusiastic supporters of the technology.

In an interview with Global News before the vote Sim, an avowed crypto evangelist, said exploring the idea was “the most responsible thing to do.”

“Bitcoin is the number one performing asset on the planet over the last 16 years, so to not even look at including it as a part of a diversified portfolio is, I think, reckless,” he said.

“Let’s just put …