El Salvador’s President says ‘enjoy life’ as Bitcoin falls
The Hindu
El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele told his Twitter followers to be patient, even as the country’s Bitcoin investments fall by more than 50% in value
On Sunday, Bitcoin fell below the key support level of $20,000. The same day, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele tweeted that investments in the biggest cryptocurrency would “immensely grow” after the bear market ends.
"I see that some people are worried or anxious about the #Bitcoin market price. My advice: stop looking at the graph and enjoy life. If you invested in #BTC your investment is safe and its value will immensely grow after the bear market. Patience is the key,” Mr. Bukele tweeted.
The Central American country adopted Bitcoin as legal tender in September, 2021, when the top crypto was worth nearly $50,000. Mr. Bukele chose Bitcoin to turn El Salvador into a global crypto hub, and bought more than 2,000 BTC for the country after the decision to make it a legal tender.
He also announced plans to start Bitcoin mining using the country’s volcanoes as energy resources. He further planned to issue “volcano bonds” to build a “Bitcoin City.” The digital currency hit a peak in November, 2021 before starting its descent.
The “Nayib Tracker” website calculated that the country is now down by 56.72% on its investments, as Mr. Bukele paid an average of $45,908.42 per Bitcoin. However, Mr. Bukele and the country’s Finance Minister have downplayed the loss.
Finance Minister Alejandro Zelaya reportedly said there was no loss as El Salvador had not sold any of its Bitcoin at current prices. He added, “this doesn’t even represent 0.5% of our budget.”
The International Monetary Fund has repeatedly warned El Salvador about the risks posed by adopting cryptocurrency as legal tender. These include price volatility, the threat of cyber crime, and the impact of price fluctuations on daily users.
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