Buenos Aires Will Run Ethereum Validators Starting in 2023

Buenos Aires plans to deploy and operate Ethereum validators next year, the city government says

article-image

Source: Shutterstock

share

key takeaways

  • The city will be a driving force behind blockchain adoption, but private companies will serve as partners in node deployment
  • Buenos Aires announced in April that citizens would be able to pay taxes using cryptocurrencies

Buenos Aires will become one of the first public entities in the world to help run Ethereum’s network infrastructure, a city official announced during Argentina’s ETHLatam conference last week.

Private companies will contract with the city to deploy validator nodes — computers running Ethereum client software — which are slated to be installed next year. 

The validators, which are responsible for storing data, processing transactions and adding new blocks to the blockchain, will become part of the proof-of-stake network consensus system being implemented in conjunction with the Merge, expected to occur in mid-September.

The city’s secretary of innovation and digital transformation, Diego Fernández, didn’t disclose how many nodes would be deployed during last week’s announcement, but each validator requires a stake of 32 ether to operate (currently valued at about $60,300).

The city council’s investment will be conducted within the regulatory sandbox created in early 2021 by the Buenos Aires legislative branch. The city’s data centers will host the nodes.

Fernández, a crypto enthusiast, told Coindesk that the city’s decision “has exploratory and regulatory purposes” that will help “develop adaptable [crypto] regulation.”

Once regarded as a crypto-friendly country, Argentina’s stance on digital assets has since shifted, although perhaps involuntarily — the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in May reportedly pressured the country’s central bank to ban unregulated crypto transactions in traditional banks.

However, the country’s capital has continued to look favorably upon the nascent space. Buenos Aires Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta in April announced that local citizens would be able to pay taxes using cryptocurrencies. He later elaborated, explaining that the process would be handled by crypto companies, as the local government itself can only accept Argentine pesos. 

Argentines rank among the world’s top adopters of digital assets, in part due to persistently high inflation in the South American country, alongside the yearslong devaluation of the local peso. Locals, in turn, have started investing in crypto to protect their savings from losing purchasing power.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

  • Blockworks Daily: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.
  • Empire: Start your morning with the top news and analysis to inform your day in crypto.
  • Forward Guidance: Reporting and analysis on the growing intersection of crypto and macroeconomics, policy and finance.
  • 0xResearch: Alpha directly in your inbox. Market highlights, data, degen trade ideas, governance updates, token performance and more.
  • Lightspeed: Built for Solana investors, developers and community members. The latest from one of crypto’s hottest networks.
  • The Drop: For crypto collectors and traders, covering apps, games, memes and more.
Tags

Upcoming Events

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research Report Templates (5).png

Research

Outside of stablecoins, the value of tokenized assets sits below $20B, dominated by the following asset classes: private credit, US Treasuries, commodities, institutional alternative funds, stocks, non-US government debt, and corporate bonds. In the coming months, we see the greatest opportunities in the tokenization of illiquid markets, particularly private equity. However, the successful integration of offchain assets into blockchain ecosystems relies heavily on clear and consistent regulatory frameworks, with purpose-built infrastructure to support it.

article-image

Tokenized private equity is the next “greatest” opportunity, BWR analyst Carlos Gonzalez Campo writes

article-image

Today Blockworks is launching Analytics 2.0, our greatly improved crypto data and analytics platform

article-image

Ethena and Securitize’s Converge will launch within the next three months

article-image

Sponsored

Ledn has positioned itself as a trusted CeFi leader in Bitcoin-backed lending

article-image

Yesterday marked the five-year anniversary of Solana’s genesis block

article-image

The Digital Asset Summit will feature TradFi and government reps speaking on broader adoption and who’s buying in