In a recent development, the cumulative value of Bitcoin assets held by El Salvador has surpassed the significant milestone of $400 million, worth 5,700 BTC.
This was revealed by the country’s president Nayib Bukele on X, after he posted a screenshot of the country’s Bitcoin address with the amount held in its portfolio, along with a link to on-chain data.
On-chain data analysis and blockchain security firm revealed that El Salvador’s cold wallet-labeled address received a total of 11 Bitcoins from Bitfinex in the last 11 days.
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The latest increase in El Salvador’s Bitcoin investment is coming after the country’s president Nayib Bukele announced the decision to transfer a big chunk of its Bitcoin to a cold wallet and store that cold wallet in a physical vault with the national territory, which he described as the first Bitcoin piggy bank.
El Salvador’s increase in Bitcoin holdings is coming following the surge in the valuation of Bitcoin which led to significantly enhanced profits. This achievement marks a notable increase in the country’s Bitcoin reserves, reflecting its ongoing commitment to adopting and integrating cryptocurrency into its economy.
Recall that El Salvador in 2021, became the first country in the world to use Bitcoin as a legal tender after having been adopted as such by the Legislative Assembly. This was done following statements from President Nayib Bukele that the crypto asset would improve the country, making banking easier for Salvadorans, and that it would encourage foreign investment.
Following the adoption of the crypto asset, it was met with widespread criticism, with The International Monetary Fund (IMF) heavily criticizing El Salvador’s decision to adopt Bitcoin.
Alongside a blog post, the IMF tweeted that the risk of “privately issued crypto assets like Bitcoin” makes it so that “making them equivalent to a national currency is an inadvisable shortcut.”
In post, it further admits that digital assets “have the potential to provide cheaper and faster payments, enhance financial inclusion, improve resilience and competition among payment providers, and facilitate cross-border transfers.”
The IMF however warned that the widespread adoption of a crypto asset such as Bitcoin could hurt macroeconomic stability.
The Central American country’s journey with Bitcoin began with the purchase of 400 BTC in September 2021, and the country has since adopted a strategy of consistent acquisition, which has contributed to the current holdings.
President Nayib Bukele disclosed that El Salvador will continue its daily Bitcoin purchases, aiming to keep buying until the cryptocurrency becomes too expensive With Fiat Currencies.
Despite many real stumbles and skeptical mainstream coverage of Nayib Bukele’s Bitcoin initiative, both tourism numbers and remittance usage are already showing meaningful payoffs. El Salvador could become the first country to prove the transformative power of cryptocurrency on a national scale.