El Salvador President Says Bitcoin Strategy Has Been Net Positive, but Adoption Still Lags

Pro-Bitcoin nation El Salvador has improved economically since adopting its Bitcoin strategy in 2021. The country now holds $400 million in Bitcoin in its public wallet alone.

President Nayib Bukele revealed this in a recent interview with TIME magazine. Bukele said the country's Bitcoin strategy and plan to become the Bitcoin hub has been net positive. However, Bitcoin adoption has fallen short of expectations.

El Salvador's Bitcoin Plans Progress as Adoption Lags

In a recent interview with Time Magazine, El Salvador's president Nayib Bukele remarked on the success of the country's Bitcoin Strategy.

The president said adopting Bitcoin as legal tender and treasury asset hasn't negatively impacted El Salvador. Instead, Bitcoin has attracted investments, tourism, and branding to the country.

However, Bukele noted that Bitcoin adoption in the country remains below expectations. While Bitcoin adoption is not as widespread as he hoped, the pro-bitcoin president believes there's still time for improvements.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other institutions have warned about the risk of the country's bold embrace of BTC. However, Bukele revealed that none of these risks have materialized.

Instead, since adopting Bitcoin as a treasury asset, El Salvador has recorded remarkable feats. The country has positioned itself at the forefront of digital assets adoption, attracting various crypto firms and projects.

I do believe that the positive outcomes outweigh the negative, and the issues that have been highlighted are relatively minor," He explained.

El Salvador Remains Bullish on Bitcoin

In September 2021, El Salvador became the first country to begin acquiring Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset. The same year, the nation also adopted Bitcoin as a legal tender.

The El Salvador government has outlined plans to establish the country as a hub for Bitcoin, paving the path for other countries to follow. It plans to issue Bitcoin-backed bonds.

In addition, in 2023, El Salvador introduced a citizenship-by-investment program called the Freedom Visa Program. This program allowed residency visas to foreigners investing at least $1 million in Bitcoin or USDT.

El Salvador's bold Bitcoin move paved the way for broader adoption across several sectors globally. Several Wall Street firms now offer bitcoin-backed investment products, with crypto dominating discussions in the current US election cycle.

Moreover, the country has consistently expanded its Bitcoin holdings, holding 5,857 BTC valued at approximately $349 million. President Bukele confirmed this in the TIME interview. He said El Salvador holds around $400 million Bitcoin in its public wallet.

In May 2024, the pro-bitcoin nation launched a Bitcoin treasury tracker that allows anyone anywhere to monitor its Bitcoin holdings in real time. Meanwhile, Bukele refused to predict Bitcoin's future but believes it has potential.

I'm not going to say it's the currency of the future, but there's a lot of future in that currency," he said.

Bitcoin is currently experiencing significant bearish pressure, which has pushed it below the $60,000 threshold. According to CoinMarketCap data, Bitcoin trades at $59,570, with a minor decline over the past day.

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