Coffee shop owner Gabe Gutierrez said bitcoin accounts for 5% to 10% of his sales. BBC
At a small coffee shop in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, customers come for freshly made coffee and packets of high-quality beans. And some pay in bitcoin.
The cryptocurrency has been legal tender in the Central American country for more than two years. Businesses are officially required to accept bitcoin, but patchy technology, limited internet access and a lack of enforcement means that only some do.
Coffee shop owner Gabe Gutierrez believes taking bitcoin payments has helped him attract customers.
“In a normal month, 5% to 10% of our sales are in bitcoin. The business impact has been very positive in that sense,” he said. “Obviously it’s bringing in revenue, but it’s not only that. It’s more convenient.“
President Nayib Bukele argued that adopting bitcoin would reduce dependence on the country’s other currency, the U.S. dollar, and make it cheaper to send and receive remittances —when migrants send home money to their family.
But in the first six months of 2023, according to El Salvador’s central bank, only around 1% of received remittances were in bitcoin. Many Salvadorans, like Delmy Bran, aren’t using the currency.
“If they educated the people in how to use the currency, then maybe we could,” he said.
Others like Bea Tenorio think the government’s decision was irresponsible.“A country needs medicine in the hospitals, resources in the schools. I don’t think those of us at the bottom will see the benefits of it.”
El Salvador has lost an estimated $40 million of its total investment in bitcoin since 2021 due to a decline in the value of the cryptocurrency. Carlos Acevedo, an economist and former president of El Salvador’s Central Reserve Bank, doesn’t think bitcoin is suitable as legal tender.
“It’s like playing Monopoly in the casino. You can win, you can lose — and we have had bad luck so far — but for people who are poor, they cannot afford to take a drop in 5%, 10% in one day.”
But the government is continuing to push bitcoin. It recently announced that bitcoin education would be compulsory in schools starting next year. People from other countries are also moving to El Salvador to use the cryptocurrency, like James Turner and Nicky Malcom of New Zealand.
“So I receive 100% of my income at the moment as bitcoin, which we then manage that to live our life here,” Turner said.“We use it to buy our groceries,” added Malcom.
Charlie Stevens moved here from Ireland.“I use bitcoin to trim my beard, for coffees, for gas, for cooking, I use it for my motorbike, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”
While some say El Salvador’s bitcoin project hasn’t succeeded, others believe it’s only just beginning.
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FAQs
El Salvador says it's sitting on an $84 million profit after bitcoin's record-breaking run. One of the few countries to adopt bitcoin as legal tender has apparently seen an $84 million profit from bitcoin, boosted by the cryptocurrency's recent rally.
Is El Salvador still accepting bitcoin? ›
El Salvador took a different path toward digital payments. In 2021, in order to promote financial inclusion and job creation and facilitate remittances, it became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender.
Has El Salvador earned $84 million from its bitcoin holdings? ›
The post, based on a website tracking the amount of bitcoin owned by the country — the Nayib Bukele BTC portfolio — shows the country owns more than $204 million worth and has seen a profit of $84,593,453 to date — a return of more than 69%.
How much is El Salvador bitcoin worth? ›
El Salvador now owns 5,750 Bitcoin, worth about $353 million at today's prices, according to the government.
Is El Salvador's economy good? ›
Updated October 2023
Its rating has decreased by 1.6 points from last year, and El Salvador is ranked 23rd out of 32 countries in the Americas region. The country's economic freedom score is lower than the world and regional averages. El Salvador's economy is considered “mostly unfree” according to the 2024 Index.
How much does the president of El Salvador make? ›
President of El Salvador
| President of the Republic of El Salvador |
|---|
| First holder | Juan José Guzmán |
| Succession | Line of succession |
| Deputy | Vice President of El Salvador |
| Salary | US$5,181 per month (2017) |
10 more rows"It doesn't offset the economic costs of the Bitcoin project." About $200m of public money has been spent trying to persuade citizens to embrace the digital currency, Ms Marroquin says. "It's a total failure," she says. "Almost no-one in El Salvador uses Bitcoin - not even in tourism does it seem to be an attraction."
How much Bitcoin does Elon Musk own? ›
The co-founder of Tesla Inc. revealed on Twitter that he owns only a tiny fraction of one bitcoin token. "I literally own zero cryptocurrency, apart from . 25 BTC that a friend sent me many years ago," Musk confessed.
Can I buy Bitcoin from El Salvador? ›
Buy Bitcoin from El Salvador
You can also use Bit2Me to sell and exchange Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, Litecoin, Dash, Bitcoin Cash, and many more. To comply with current legislation, Bit2Me may request additional information and documents at any time during operations.
How many Bitcoin does El Salvador mine? ›
Since then, the country's Bitcoin Office says that 474 Bitcoins worth around $29m have been mined. In total, the El Salvador government owns around 5,750 Bitcoin. El Salvador is a hotbed of geothermal activity, boasting 20 volcanoes that have been active in the last 10,000 years.
The all-time high of Bitcoin is $73,780.07.
How much is the price of bitcoin today? ›
Price of BTC today
The live price of Bitcoin is $ 67,720.40 per (BTC / USD) with a current market cap of $ 1,334.55B USD. 24-hour trading volume is $ 11.16B USD. BTC to USD price is updated in real-time. Bitcoin is +0.2% in the last 24 hours with a circulating supply of 19.71M.
How much is El Salvador in debt? ›
GDP in El Salvador is offically estimated to be $30 Billion US dollars at the end of 2023. The economy of El Salvador is offically reported as having a debt-to-GDP ratio of 81.3%, indicating El Salvador's debt level is $24 Billion.
How much did El Salvador pay per bitcoin? ›
El Salvador became the first country to purchase bitcoin as a treasury asset in September 2021, when a single coin cost around $52,000.
Who owns the most bitcoin? ›
According to the Bitcoin research and analysis firm River Intelligence, Satoshi Nakamoto, the anonymous creator behind Bitcoin, is listed as the top BTC holder as of 2024. The company notes that Satoshi Nakamoto holds about 1.1m BTC tokens in about 22,000 different addresses.
How much bitcoin does BlackRock own? ›
How Much Bitcoin Does BlackRock Own? The Blackrock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) currently holds 289,058 BTC as of May 30, 2024.
What is the national debt of El Salvador? ›
GDP in El Salvador is offically estimated to be $30 Billion US dollars at the end of 2023. The economy of El Salvador is offically reported as having a debt-to-GDP ratio of 81.3%, indicating El Salvador's debt level is $24 Billion.
How much bitcoin does the government own? ›
The US government's stake in Bitcoin is undeniably significant, with holdings that are worth an impressive $5.5 billion. Meanwhile, Georgia, with its modest holding of 66 BTC, showcases a more cautious approach to the digital currency landscape.
How much bitcoin does Michael Saylor have? ›
Because Saylor owns about 12% of the company's shares, his stock holdings plus his personal stash of more than 17,000 Bitcoin factor in majorly to his net worth of just under $4 billion, according to Forbes.
