The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has again called on El Salvador to keep its Bitcoin holdings unchanged.
In a statement released on May 27, the IMF said government-owned wallets must not increase their BTC reserves and also urged the country to fully exit its role in the Chivo wallet by the end of July.
According to the global financial body:
“Efforts will continue to ensure that the total amount of Bitcoin held across all government-owned wallets remains unchanged, consistent with program commitments, while also securing the unwinding of the public sector’s participation in the Chivo wallet by end-July.”
This directive follows a staff-level agreement that would unlock $120 million for El Salvador as part of a $1.4 billion loan deal.
However, the final approval still depends on the IMF executive board and whether the country meets its policy commitments.
El Salvador first signed the financing arrangement in December 2024, and one key condition was to reduce direct state involvement in Bitcoin-related activities.
El Salvador’s Bitcoin embrace
Despite this, the Central American country has aggressively acquired more Bitcoin over the past few months.
For context, the government added at least eight more BTC to its coffers in the past week alone and has shown no sign of slowing down.
El Salvador’s national Bitcoin office confirmed the country now holds nearly 6,190 BTC. At current prices, this stash is worth over $674 million and has generated unrealized profits of more than $200 million.
President Nayib Bukele, the principal architect of El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin, has remained firm on the policy.
He has dismissed external pressure and consistently emphasized the economic gains achieved under his administration’s BTC-first approach.
Stacy Herbert, who leads the Bitcoin office, reinforced this stance. She said the government is actively shaping the legal and financial infrastructure needed to attract capital by adopting the top crypto.
She stated:
“We are working to build the robust capital markets needed for an economic miracle to happen: with both our proposed legislation to attract international capital as well as our work establishing the world’s first Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and encouraging a government policy of aggressive bitcoin accumulation.”
