Bitcoin Use in El Salvador Falls to 8.1% as Rules Ease
El Salvador became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in September 2021, launching the Chivo wallet and spending public funds to encourage adoption. President Nayib Bukele promoted the experiment as a way to cut remittance costs and expand financial inclusion, but price volatility, technical hurdles and the convenience of the US dollar kept the cryptocurrency from becoming a routine payment method.
Only 8.1% of Salvadorans surveyed used Bitcoin for transactions in 2024, the lowest rate since adoption. Even around Bitcoin Beach, the project’s symbolic birthplace, one restaurant reportedly received just one Bitcoin payment in an entire month. Seeking a $1.4 billion International Monetary Fund program, lawmakers amended the Bitcoin law in January 2025 to make merchant acceptance voluntary, while consumers increasingly returned to conventional card payments.
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The history behind this eventEl Salvador’s Crypto Remittances Stall at 0.7% Five Years On
El Salvador became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender on Sept. 7, 2021, after lawmakers approved the Bitcoin Law that June. President Nayib Bukele’s government also launched the Chivo wallet, pitching the cryptocurrency as a way to cut remittance fees and broaden financial access. Five years on, limited public trust in crypto assets and entrenched payment habits have kept adoption well below official ambitions.
Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador data show the country received more than $5 billion in remittances in the first half of 2026, with just $35.4 million, or 0.7%, settled through cryptocurrency channels. Banks and traditional money-transfer companies still handled more than 84% of the flows. Under a $1.4 billion IMF program approved on Feb. 26, 2025, the government made Bitcoin acceptance voluntary and began unwinding public-sector participation in the Chivo wallet.
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