El Salvador continues to purchase Bitcoin.

El Salvador, following a $1.4 billion loan agreement with the IMF, added 11 more Bitcoins, challenging its economic policies. This strategic move demonstrates the country's determination to expand its Bitcoin investments and highlights its conflicting relationship with global financial authorities.

El Salvador Continues Bitcoin Purchases Despite IMF Restrictions

The El Salvador government decided to increase its Bitcoin assets before the ink on the loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund had dried. The country's National Bitcoin Office announced on December 19 that it had made a new Bitcoin investment of $1 million.

With the latest transaction carried out under President Nayib Bukele's daily Bitcoin purchase strategy initiated in November 2022, the country's total Bitcoin holdings rose to 5,980.77. Considering Bitcoin's market value at around $97,000, the total value of El Salvador's cryptocurrency assets reached $580 million.

This striking move came immediately after El Salvador signed a $1.4 billion loan agreement with the IMF on December 18. Although the agreement includes conditions to limit the country's Bitcoin activities, National Bitcoin Office Director Stacy Herbert announced that cryptocurrency purchases would continue to accelerate.

As part of the agreement, El Salvador committed to reducing Bitcoin transactions in the public sector and accepting tax payments only in US dollars. Additionally, reducing the government's control over the Chivo digital wallet was also among the terms of the agreement.

Having become the first country to accept Bitcoin as legal tender in September 2021, El Salvador does not appear to be willing to abandon this policy. A spokesperson for the Bitcoin Office emphasized that existing assets would not be sold and that Bitcoin would maintain its central position in the country's economic strategy.

While the IMF Executive Board is expected to approve the agreement, it is noted that the four-year negotiation process has reached this point due to Bukele's Bitcoin policies. Herbert made positive statements about the continuation of private sector Bitcoin wallet activities in the country and the future of the Chivo wallet.