El Salvador secures $138 million IMF disbursement while maintaining Bitcoin accumulation limits
Quick Look
- El Salvador received an immediate $138 million disbursement from the IMF after the completion of the second and third reviews of its $1.4 billion loan program, with waivers granted for unmet Bitcoin-related performance criteria.
- The IMF confirmed that no further state-funded Bitcoin accumulation is envisaged beyond documented donations, preserving restrictions despite the financing release.
- El Salvador currently holds approximately 7,794.37 Bitcoin valued at around $666.1 million, and the government continues to face obligations to improve crypto disclosure, regulate digital-asset providers, and fully unwind public-sector exposure through the Chivo wallet transfer.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021 and has since accumulated a significant state-held cryptocurrency reserve. The country entered a $1.4 billion Extended Fund Facility with the IMF in February 2025 to support fiscal adjustment and reserve accumulation. The program includes performance criteria related to Bitcoin accumulation, which have previously been breached, requiring waivers for continued financing.
El Salvador secured access to $138 million from the IMF while recommitting to limits on further state Bitcoin accumulation.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed the second and third reviews of the country’s $1.4 billion loan program on Oct. 1, allowing an immediate disbursement equivalent to SDR 101.96 million, or $138 million. The board also granted waivers for unmet performance criteria tied to Bitcoin accumulation after authorities took corrective measures and renewed their commitments.
Those waivers keep financing flowing despite earlier breaches, while leaving the program’s direction on Bitcoin unchanged. The IMF said no further accumulation is envisaged beyond documented donations, preserving a constraint that prevents the government from resuming publicly funded purchases under the program.
El Salvador currently holds about 7,794.37 Bitcoin valued at roughly $666.1 million. The size of that reserve has continued to draw attention because additions to government-linked wallets appear inconsistent with the IMF agreement.
The Fund has previously distinguished between Bitcoin acquired with public money and coins received through documented donations. That distinction remains central after the latest review: reserve balances can still rise without signaling that President Nayib Bukele’s government has restarted purchases.
Bitcoin waiver keeps restrictions intact
The Bitcoin concession formed part of a broader review in which the IMF said fiscal consolidation was advancing broadly in line with program objectives and reserve and liquidity targets had been comfortably met. The 40-month Extended Fund Facility was approved in February 2025 and is designed to support fiscal adjustment, stronger reserves and financial-sector reforms.
The Fund also cited progress in reducing the state’s direct role in crypto. The government has transferred majority ownership and control of the government-backed Chivo wallet to a private operator, though the IMF said remaining public-sector exposure should still be fully unwound.
That leaves several Bitcoin-related obligations unresolved even as another tranche of financing becomes available.
The IMF wants El Salvador to improve disclosure of public-sector crypto holdings, strengthen regulation and governance for digital-asset providers and amend its Digital Asset Issuance Law where necessary. Those measures sit alongside the continued commitment to avoid additional government-funded Bitcoin accumulation.
The restrictions give the government less room to use its balance sheet to expand the Bitcoin reserve while remaining inside the IMF program, even as higher BTC prices increase the value of the holdings it already controls.
Future reviews will therefore hinge partly on whether El Salvador can document how its Bitcoin balance changes while completing the remaining Chivo unwind and transparency reforms. Any unexplained accumulation could again force the government to seek waivers before accessing further program financing.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
El Salvador will complete the transfer of majority ownership and control of the Chivo wallet to a private operator within the next 3 to 6 months.
Likely · Within months
El Salvador will face another waiver request for Bitcoin-related performance criteria if unexplained increases in state-linked Bitcoin holdings occur before the next IMF review.
Possible · Within months
Open Questions
- What specific corrective measures did El Salvador take to address the unmet Bitcoin-related performance criteria?
- When are the next IMF reviews scheduled for El Salvador's loan program?
- How will the government ensure full unwinding of public-sector exposure in the Chivo wallet?
- What amendments to the Digital Asset Issuance Law is the IMF requesting?
