IMF Raises Concern Over El Salvador’s Adoption of Bitcoin as Legal Tender

Time Stamp: June 10, 2021 11:40 AM
Source Node: 913196

International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised concerns over El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin as a legal tender. It said Bitcoin poses macroeconomics, financial and legal issues. IMF’s statement comes ahead of its meeting with Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele later on Thursday.

Gerry Rice, an IMF spokesman said,

“Adoption of bitcoin as legal tender raises several macroeconomic, financial, and legal issues that require very careful analysis,”

“We are following developments closely, and we’ll continue our consultations with the authorities.”

El Salvador made history yesterday after it passed a bill to make Bitcoin a parallel legal tender, becoming the first country in the world to do so. The Salvadorian government also bought $150 million in Bitcoin and announced it would accept BTC from various merchants and promote its use.

President Bukele also attended a Twitter Space when Congress was voting on the Bitcoin bill and discussed the possibilities and scope of Bitcoin as legal tender. During his interaction, Bukele was asked about the possibilities of Bitcoin mining in the country owing to its hydro and volcanic energy. The president said he has not given any thought to mining but assured that he will look into the possibilities of Bitcoin mining using volcanic energy.

Earlier today the President announced that he has talked with the president of the geothermal electric company to make way for Bitcoin mining using volcanic energy.

Max Keiser Proposes to Boot Out IMF

El Salvador is currently seeking a $1 billion program from IMF which would be the country’s priority during the upcoming meeting on Thursday.

The concerns raised by IMF drew heavy backlash from the crypto community who called it a destructive force for Latin America. Max Keiser, a big-time Bitcoin proponent even proposed to boot out IMF’s intervention in El Salvador’s financial decision by offering the Central American Nation a $1 billion lending facility.

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About Author
An engineering graduate, Prashant focuses on UK and Indian markets. As a crypto-journalist, his interests lie in blockchain technology adoption across emerging economies.
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