IMF praises El Salvador's "economic growth" surpassing expectations! Controversy over the "Bitcoin ban" cools down

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released a new statement on Monday, praising El Salvador’s economic growth performance as better than expected, and no longer mentioning the previous recommendation for El Salvador to “pause buying coins.” The outside world interprets this as a sign that the tense relationship over Bitcoin policy between the two sides is beginning to ease.

Led by President Nayib Bukele, El Salvador has continued to promote the “Bitcoin strategy” in recent years. Even earlier this year, during negotiations to secure an IMF loan, the country did not stop accumulating Bitcoin.

In November this year, when the cryptocurrency market experienced a significant correction, El Salvador even broke its usual “buy 1 Bitcoin per day” dollar-cost averaging rhythm, significantly increasing its holdings by over 1,000 Bitcoins in a single month.

As of now, El Salvador holds nearly 7,500 Bitcoins, worth approximately $660 million.

Progress in Negotiations to Sell Chivo Wallet

The IMF also revealed in its statement that negotiations for the sale of the Chivo wallet by the El Salvador government have “made substantial progress.” Chivo is the official Bitcoin wallet launched by the El Salvador government and played a key role during the initial phase when Bitcoin became the country’s legal tender.

The IMF added that discussions on Bitcoin-related policies are still ongoing, focusing on three main areas: increasing transparency, ensuring the safety of public resources, and reducing risks.

Economic Growth Surpasses Expectations

The IMF pointed out that El Salvador’s economic growth rate has exceeded market expectations, mainly due to increased confidence, record-high remittance inflows, and a warming of investment activities.

The IMF estimates that El Salvador’s real GDP growth rate could reach about 4%, and assesses the country’s economic outlook for 2026 as “very optimistic.”

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