El Salvador Buys 1,000 Bitcoin Amid Market Crash

El Salvador has intensified its Bitcoin strategy with its largest one-day acquisition to date, adding more than 1,000 BTC in a single transaction that pushed the country’s reported holdings to approximately 7,500 Bitcoin. The $100 million purchase was executed as Bitcoin briefly plunged below $90,000, demonstrating the Central American nation’s commitment to accumulating the cryptocurrency during market volatility. President Nayib Bukele shared a screenshot of the transaction on his X account, reaffirming his earlier stance that the government has no plans to pause its accumulation program.

This latest acquisition aligns with President Bukele’s pledge to keep expanding the national BTC reserve through steady daily acquisitions, representing a significant escalation in the country’s cryptocurrency strategy. The timing of the purchase during a market downturn suggests a deliberate approach to buying during periods of price weakness, potentially maximizing the value of the country’s cryptocurrency investments. The transaction represents the most substantial single-day increase since El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021.

The announcement has renewed questions about how these Bitcoin holdings are being managed and whether the government is making fresh market purchases or simply consolidating assets across its various wallets. The International Monetary Fund’s $1.4 billion loan agreement explicitly states that El Salvador’s public sector should not acquire additional Bitcoin, creating a direct conflict with the country’s accumulation strategy. Senior financial officials had previously indicated that the government had not added any Bitcoin units since February, making this recent announcement particularly significant.

An IMF report later indicated that increases in the Bitcoin reserve likely reflect internal transfers between government wallets rather than new market purchases. Despite this assessment, the country’s Bitcoin Office continues to assert that real purchases are taking place, with leadership pointing to on-chain records as evidence of genuine acquisitions. This conflicting narrative highlights the ongoing tension between El Salvador’s sovereign financial strategy and international financial institution guidelines.

Beyond its aggressive accumulation strategy, El Salvador is positioning itself as a regional leader in digital asset policy. In July, the Central Bank of Bolivia signed a memorandum of understanding with El Salvador’s National Commission for Digital Assets, establishing a framework for the two institutions to exchange technical and regulatory expertise. The partnership includes collaboration on blockchain analytics and risk-assessment tools, representing a major step for Bolivia as it seeks clearer rules following last year’s Decree 082/2024.

For El Salvador, the agreement with Bolivia strengthens its role as a regional authority in cryptocurrency policy, backed by years of experience regulating, purchasing, and even mining BTC. The country’s expertise has become increasingly valuable as digital-asset usage accelerates across Latin America. This regional leadership extends to international coordination, including a meeting earlier this year between President Bukele and Bo Hines, the executive director of the White House’s Presidential Council of Advisers for Digital Assets, signaling El Salvador’s growing influence in global digital asset policy discussions.