El Salvador Ends Public Bitcoin Buying Amid IMF Agreement
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced that El Salvador will no longer use public funds to buy Bitcoin. Since its first Extended Fund Facility review on June 27, 2025, all Bitcoin acquired by the country have come from private donations.
This marks an end to El Salvador's government-funded Bitcoin buying strategy. The IMF expects no further accumulation of BTC beyond the documented donations. The decision is part of a staff-level agreement between the IMF and Salvadoran authorities on the combined second and third reviews of the country's 40-month Extended Fund Facility arrangement.
The agreement also includes structural changes, such as transferring e-wallet ownership and operational control to a private operator, improving transparency of Bitcoin holdings across various wallets, and modernizing El Salvador's legal framework for digital assets. The country committed to deepening fiscal consolidation, aiming for a non-financial public sector primary surplus of 3.7% in 2027.
The IMF agreement offers a possible template for handling sovereign Bitcoin holdings in other countries. With its existing holdings intact, El Salvador's status as an active sovereign Bitcoin buyer has effectively ended. The country's Bitcoin treasury currently holds 7,764 BTC.