The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has verified that private donations, rather than public resources, have driven El Salvador's Bitcoin reserve growth since the country's first program review under its Extended Fund Facility.
The finding emerged alongside a staff-level agreement on El Salvador's combined second and third program reviews. Executive Board approval of the agreement would release approximately $140 million in funding.
Program Details and Bitcoin Oversight
El Salvador entered the 40-month Extended Fund Facility in February 2025, with total access of roughly $1.4 billion, equivalent to 360% of the country's quota at the fund. The arrangement has included significant focus on the country's Bitcoin holdings since its inception.
At the first review, completed on June 27, 2025, the IMF confirmed that public-sector Bitcoin holdings had not increased since the program began. The IMF stated that documentation had been provided verifying Bitcoin accumulation since that review reflected private donations with no public resources used.
The fund indicated that no further Bitcoin accumulation beyond the documented donations is expected going forward.
Digital Asset Framework and Chivo Transition
Both the IMF and El Salvador agreed to modernize the legal, regulatory, and supervisory framework for digital assets, with plans to tighten oversight and risk controls on cryptocurrency holdings.
Public involvement in the Chivo e-wallet has been substantially reduced, with a private operator assuming majority ownership and day-to-day control. The state retained a small stake while continuing to safeguard customer assets. Work is also underway to improve the transparency of Bitcoin held across various wallets.
Economic Projections
The IMF Mission Chief projected real gross domestic product growth of 4.5% for 2026, supported by investment, consumption, remittances, and tourism. The non-financial public sector primary surplus is expected to widen from 2.9% of GDP in the current year to 3.7% in 2027.
