El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele announced early Monday morning that his government has purchased 150 more bitcoins, bringing the country’s total holdings to 700 coins. The landmark bitcoin law, which made the cryptocurrency legal tender alongside the U.S. dollar, took effect on Sept. 7.
Buying the Dip: 150 New Bitcoins
Bukele tweeted: “We just bought the dip. 150 new coins! El Salvador now holds 700 coins.” He further wrote, “They can never beat you if you buy the dips … Presidential advice.” At the time of the announcement, bitcoin was trading around $45,000, but has since slipped to $43,326 at the time of writing.
El Salvador began purchasing bitcoin on Sept. 6, a day before the law came into effect. On Sept. 7, Bukele announced the country had acquired a total of 550 bitcoins. The new purchase raises the total to 700 BTC.
Cryptocurrency ATMs and the Chivo Wallet
According to Coinatmradar.com, El Salvador now has 205 crypto ATM locations, making it the country with the third-highest number of such machines globally, behind only the United States and Canada. However, reports indicate that the Salvadoran Court of Accounts is planning to investigate the government’s bitcoin ATM purchases and Chivo kiosk construction.
The launch of the Chivo wallet, the government’s official bitcoin wallet, experienced a rocky start. However, on Sept. 16, Bukele claimed the app is “already working 100%.” Analysts estimate that remittance providers like MoneyGram and Western Union could lose up to $400 million annually if the Chivo wallet gains widespread adoption.
On Friday, Bukele tweeted that 1.1 million Salvadorans already use the Chivo wallet, adding that “we haven’t enabled 65% of phone models yet.” He opined: “It seems that we will be able to bank more people in 1 month than they did with nationalizations and privatizations of traditional banks in 40 years.”
Outlook and Challenges
El Salvador’s bitcoin experiment has drawn global attention. Supporters see it as a way to boost financial inclusion and reduce remittance costs, while critics warn of the risks from bitcoin’s price volatility. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other institutions have expressed concerns about the policy.
As the government continues to accumulate bitcoin and expand the Chivo wallet, the world watches to see whether this pioneering move will succeed or falter. The coming months will provide clearer data on its impact.
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