Macro-financial risk
2026-04-26
12 min read
12 sources
El Salvador after the Bitcoin Reset: IMF Climbdown, CECOT, and the 2026 Fiscal Outlook
The January 29, 2025 IMF EFF for USD 1.4 billion forced El Salvador to repeal mandatory Bitcoin acceptance, wind down Chivo, and shrink the Bitcoin Office, while Bukele's 84 percent reelection and homicides at 2 per 100,000 anchor a tourism, remittances, and deportation bet.
On September 7, 2021 El Salvador made Bitcoin legal tender. On January 29, 2025 the IMF Executive Board approved a 40 month, USD 1.4 billion Extended Fund Facility that required the Bitcoin Law amended so private sector acceptance is voluntary, the Chivo Wallet wound down, and the Bitcoin Office reduced. Bitcoin remains legal but no longe...