El Salvador did not spend public money on the bitcoin it has added since the first review of its International Monetary Fund loan program, the fund said, citing documentation handed over by Salvadoran authorities.
Donations behind a growing balance
The documents showed that every coin added after that review arrived as a private donation, and the IMF said it expects no accumulation beyond what donors provide.
That clears up an apparent contradiction.
The first review had called for the public sector’s bitcoin balance to stay unchanged, yet the government’s own tally has kept climbing to 7,764.37 BTC after a jump of more than 1,000 BTC in November and a steady intake of one coin a day.
The fund named neither the donors nor the amounts each gave.
President Nayib Bukele said in March of last year that the country’s bitcoin purchases would not stop because of the IMF deal.
Chivo handed to a private operator
The government has since transferred majority ownership and operational control of its Chivo wallet to a private operator, keeping a minority stake and responsibility for custody of customer assets.
The IMF did not say who the operator is.
Both sides also agreed on steps to tighten the legal and supervisory framework for crypto and to improve oversight of bitcoin held by the public sector.
About $140 million on the way
The disclosures came alongside a staff-level agreement on the combined second and third reviews of El Salvador’s 40-month Extended Fund Facility, which puts roughly $140 million within reach once the IMF board approves it.
El Salvador made bitcoin legal tender in 2021, the first country to do so, though the original $1.4 billion agreement made private-sector acceptance voluntary, required taxes to be paid in dollars and limited public-sector purchases.
