Majority of El Salvadorans oppose the authorities’ cryptocurrency policy

In this, 75% of the country’s residents have not used digital assets in 2022

21.10.2022 - 09:15

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What’s new? According to a University of Central America (UCA) study, 77% of El Salvadorans believe that the government should stop spending public funds to buy bitcoins. According to Barrons, a similar percentage of respondents believe that adopting the first cryptocurrency as a legal tender was a bad decision. In this, 75,6% of El Salvadorans noted that they have not used digital assets in 2022.

Material by Barrons

More details about the situation. UCA rector Andreu Oliva noted that bitcoin, whose value has been falling rapidly all this year, “is the government's most unpopular measure, the most criticized and the most frowned upon.”

In September 2021, El Salvador became the first country in the world to accept bitcoin as official tender. In July 2022, amid the global downturn in the crypto market, El Salvador added 80 BTC worth $1,52 million. The total number of BTC in the country’s account as of October 20 is 2381 BTC (~$45,33 million, according to Binance).

Herewith, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) opposed the legalization of the first cryptocurrency in El Salvador. According to the organization, such an initiative carries risks for users and the country’s financial system. Because of this, the IMF refused to provide El Salvador with a $1,4 billion loan.

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