IMF: El Salvador’s Bitcoin Adoption Risks Are Yet To Materialize

• IMF believes El Salvador’s bitcoin risks need attention.
• El Salvador has invested $103M in BTC with over $51 million in losses.
• Last year, the country sought $500 from legislators million to buy Bitcoin.

Yesterday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stated that the risks related to El Salvador’s adoption of bitcoin are yet to materialize, yet its crypto usage still needs openness and attention.

According to the report, the IMF said:

Given the legal risks, fiscal fragility, and largely speculative nature of crypto markets, the authorities should reconsider their plans to expand government exposures to bitcoin.

According to information from BuyBitcoinWorldwide, El Salvador holds 2,381 BTC with an average purchase price of $43,357. Although the country has invested $103,233,360 in these crypto purchases, the current market value sits at $51.59 million, implying more than $51 million in losses.

After Bitcoin touched its two years low of $15,500 last November, the president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, announced that the country would be buying one unit of Bitcoin every day starting November 18, 2022. However, there has been no official documentation of the purchases, if any.

In the same month, the Bitcoin-friendly country took a formal step toward issuing the first sovereign blockchain bond in history. The government of El Salvador transmitted a 33-page legislation calling for a digital assets commission and a Bitcoin Fund Management Agency to oversee crypto-related debt sales.

The report remarked that the digital securities bill involved raising a $1 billion fund, of which $500 million would be for the Bitcoin City infrastructure and another $500 million to buy Bitcoin tokens. Notably, the bondholders would share in any appreciation in the Bitcoin asset.