In a movement called Puertopia, an impressive number of influential crypto millionaires are now flocking to Puerto Rico to set up a paradise that is founded on cryptocurrency and Blockchain technologies. Of course, the end goal is to build a new city complete with an airport and a harbour. We are witnessing a wave of cryptoprenuers buying properties left and right all around Old San Juan, the colonial heart of the city.

Leading this initiative is Brock Pierce, who has around US$6.5 billion and is a director of the Bitcoin Foundation. He was once a controversial ex-child actor and World of Warcraft gold miner. Together with other Puertopian pioneers, they all saw the strategic advantage of setting up shop in an unincorporated US territory that offers no federal income taxes, no capital gains tax and no indecent business taxes for Americans residents. These are the very attractions that have led many to sell their homes in California and Silicon Valley for a residency on this small Caribbean island in hopes of getting away from burdensome state and federal taxes on their increasing wealth that has grown into billions of dollars.

[Puertopia has since been renamed Sol after learning that it meant “eternal boy playground” in Latin]

Joining Pierce are Bryan Larkin, chief of Blockchain Industries and a Bitcoin miner who mined about US$2Bn, Reeve Collins, whose ICO for BlockV which is a kind of app store for the blockchain raised more than US$20Mn and with tokens worth about US$125Mn, and Matt Clemenson, co-founder of lottery.com, a blockchain solution for lotteries.

The bid to build a new utopia with a Star-Studded cast of a 'who’s who' in the crypto world comes as a rather welcome development and 'Answered Prayers' [to quote Truman Capote] for Puerto Rico which was ravaged by Hurricane Maria five months ago. It is still struggling to rebound with little help from Washington. Obviously sidelined by restoration efforts and US politics, Puerto Rico is more than happy to offer a haven to those looking to safeguard their cryptocurrency fortunes - and continue to grow their riches.

Brock Pierce was once quoted as saying that the “Sol” initiative is keen on “helping the Puerto Rican people” & will be able to “start from scratch” as a local partner in building the new utopia. But there is more to it than what was said, and we continue to be sceptical as to what the big ruckus is all about with the mass influx of crypto wealth into this tiny Caribbean island.

Although the intentions may seem noble, the truth of the matter is that there seems to be less money being spent on rebuilding that utopian dream than on avoiding taxes and sipping cocktails by the beach. Moreover, it is no secret Reeve Collins, one of Pierce’s partners, is openly anti-tax and has made it clear that he does not want to pay taxes.

What does it mean for native Puerto Ricans to have a deluge of crypto-millionaires descending on Old San Juan? Even if we were to believe that this crypto utopia promises a good life for everyone, the sad truth on the ground is that outsiders receive tax exemptions while the locals can hardly get permits. This trend has been happening in Puerto Rico for years; locals are excluded from the gold rush while the mega-rich frolic on the beaches sipping rum - exploiting the island, its resources and its people.

Now, these are the same mega rich exploiting the current sad circumstances in Puerto Rico in the guise of heroes through disaster capitalism.

What Sol or Puertopia is, is nothing but a buzzword to justify their current presence on the island paradise. Until we see the crypto millions flowing in to rebuild the city, all of this Puertopia talk is just lip service.

It is a great idea, and the good intentions for the Puerto Rican people are worth considering. But remember, the road to hell is paved with good intentions.