The big news from Crypto Valley Summit’s closing day was that the Isle of Man is currently considering whether to allow residents the ability to pay their government bills, including income and other taxes, with bitcoin. The announcement was made during the event’s closing speech by Chris Corlett, chief executive of the government’s Department of Economic Development, which is in charge of setting policy on economic and jobs growth on the island.

Corlett said: “We are considering what services we can deploy to allow these emerging payment types as part of our portfolio. We are seeking payment methods that provide the lowest cost and greatest convenience to citizens and businesses.”

The Isle of Man government is formally accepting ‘expressions of interest’ from payments providers who can supply digital currency or card payments systems to the government. These systems would be available to businesses and citizens to pay for bills ranging from road tax to income tax, Corlett said.

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Corlett prefaced the announcement with a recounting of the island’s economic growth over the last three decades. Describing the island as a “fading Victorian seaside resort” when he was growing up, Corlett noted that 30 years ago, the Isle of Man’s per capita GDP was about half the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) average.

The island’s growth has been helped in recent years by the number of online gambling companies who base their operations there. The world’s largest online poker firm, Poker Stars, for example, had only four staff when it started on the island, but employs nearly 300 people today, Corlett said.

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Corlett underlined the importance of the ˝e-business˝ sector, which includes digital currency companies, in the projected growth of the island’s economy.

“It’s front and centre for us as an economy and as a government. We need to create the right environment for e-business to thrive,” he said.

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