The IMF says El Salvador lied about its BTC purchases

In a recent report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stated that El Salvador has not purchased any Bitcoin since December of last year.

The Central American country’s Bitcoin Office has published regular updates on X, claiming that El Salvador is purchasing Bitcoin regularly. However, the IMF stated that El Salvador was merely moving BTC between government wallets.

The IMF says El Salvador lied about its BTC purchases

The IMF report is the first review of the 40-month, $1.4 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement with El Salvador. In the report, the IMF stated that “the overall stock of Bitcoin held by the public sector has remained unchanged since program approval.” This statement debunks El Salvador’s claims of purchasing 1 BTC every single day.

The IMF explained that the perceived increase in El Salvador’s public Bitcoin reserves was due to internal transfers and wallet consolidations among government-controlled wallets. More specifically, the BTC movements occurred between the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Fund and the Chivo e‑wallet.

The IMF report included a footnote that says, “Increases in Bitcoin holdings in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Fund reflect the consolidation of Bitcoin across various government‑owned wallets.”

The report, however, noted minor fluctuations in Chivo wallet balances due to client deposit activity. These were not the result of new public BTC purchases. 

As part of its $1.4 billion Extended Fund Facility agreement, the IMF explicitly required El Salvador to halt new Bitcoin purchases. Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, took to X on March 4 and said, “No, it’s not stopping. If it didn’t stop when the world ostracized us and most ‘bitcoiners’ abandoned us, it won’t stop now, and it won’t stop in the future. Proof of work > proof of whining.”

The rhetoric of the Salvadoran government is mostly showmanship, but its actions align with the IMF’s demands. At the moment, the country’s Bitcoin Office website claims that the fund holds 6,242.18 BTC and an increase of 30 BTC in the last 30 days. 

Bitcoin City stalled, other projects halted

At the end of 2021, Nayib Bukele announced his plan to build a Bitcoin City in the southeastern region of La Unión. Bukele promised zero income tax, zero property tax, no procurement tax, zero city tax, and zero CO₂ emissions. After almost four years, Bitcoin City remains a proposal, and no construction has commenced.

Volcano Bonds, another project that promised the issuance of a $1 billion Bitcoin bond, was indefinitely postponed in March 2022. The delayed issuance of the “Volcano Bonds” was tied to global market volatility and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

At the time, the country’s Finance Minister, Alejandro Zelaya, said on local TV, “We believe that between March 15 and 20 is the right timing, we have the tools almost finished. But the international context will tell us … I didn’t expect the war in Ukraine.”

The LaGeo crypto mining facility, a state-owned geothermal Bitcoin mining initiative, was announced in June 2021. Bukele proposed a plan to use 100% clean, volcano-powered geothermal energy to mine Bitcoin. He even shared a video of a Bitcoin mining facility using volcanic power. As of 2025, the mining project is reportedly inactive.

Other projects, like El Salvador’s Bitcoin-funded Chivo Pets hospital, were completely halted in March. El Salvador’s long list of failed Bitcoin projects also includes an NFT casino, the Chivo Wallet, and Chivo Pets. The lie of a continuous Bitcoin acquisition is the final nail in the coffin.

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