Bitcoin Controversy: IMF Report Challenges Bukele’s Claims

Since El Salvador raised the orange flag in 2021 by adopting bitcoin as legal tender, the country has constantly been making headlines. Between the messianic vision of President Nayib Bukele and international fascination, the story seemed clear: every day, El Salvador was buying one BTC. However, the curtain has just fallen. An official IMF report, accompanied by a letter signed by the highest financial officials of the country, states in black and white: no bitcoin purchases since February 2025.

The daily bitcoin fiction: Bukele caught off guard

Since November 2022, President Bukele, through his highly publicized Bitcoin Office, proudly announced the daily purchase of one bitcoin. This initiative, seen as a defiance to international financial institutions, was also a powerful narrative tool: that of a country resisting and investing in the future.

But the story is crumbling. According to the document published on July 15 as part of the IMF compliance report, the stock of bitcoins held by the public sector has remained unchanged since February.

The officials: Central Bank President Douglas Pablo Rodríguez Fuentes and Finance Minister Jerson Rogelio Posada Molina, assert that the wallets, both hot and cold, have been fully handed over to the IMF for verification. Translation: everything is traceable, verified, and the numbers do not lie.

This is a dramatic turnaround because it contradicts the statements of the president himself, who swore never to stop buying BTC, even if it meant tension with the IMF.

Consolidation, not accumulation: El Salvador’s unclear strategy

While observers expected regular purchases, the movements identified on the blockchain mainly show consolidations of wallets. The IMF report specifies:

Increases in Bitcoin holdings in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Fund reflect the consolidation of Bitcoin across various government-owned wallets.

This means that the Salvadoran government was simply moving funds already in its possession, likely to better secure or organize them.

The image of an accumulating state dissipates. Worse, if the official statements aimed to give an impression of consistency, they now dangerously flirt with political misinformation.

Bitcoin and realpolitik: El Salvador seeks balance

What is at stake here goes beyond simple crypto portfolio management. El Salvador faces a major strategic tension: satisfying the IMF’s transparency and prudence requirements while cultivating its avant-garde image in the crypto universe.

The Bukele administration seems to want to juggle between two narratives: that reassuring one of being a good IMF student, and that flamboyant one of being a bitcoin pioneer. The problem? Trying to play on both tables risks eroding credibility.

The IMF, for its part, remains pragmatic. It recognizes that consolidating BTC does not violate the terms of the financing. But this polite neutrality does not erase the underlying tension: that of a country wanting to free itself while remaining dependent.

Has El Salvador really turned the page on bitcoin, or is this simply a tactical adjustment to preserve vital financial support? Difficult to decide. One thing is certain: the era of storytelling around daily bitcoin purchases seems truly over. Fortunately, this does not affect bitcoin’s price, which continues its steady trajectory.