El Salvador In Advanced Talks To Sell Government-Backed Chivo Wallet As Part Of $1.4B Loan Deal, IMF Reveals ⋆ ZyCrypto

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said talks on the sale of El Salvador’s Chivo crypto wallet have made substantial progress.

In a statement on Monday, the IMF said El Salvador’s government was continuing to discuss its Bitcoin project with the fund’s officials, and negotiations for the sale of the government e-wallet Chivo, which incentivized new users with a one-time $30 payment, are “well advanced.”

“Discussions with regards to the Bitcoin project continue, centered on enhancing transparency, safeguarding public resources, and mitigating risks,” the IMF added.

The statement follows a May agreement with El Salvador in which the IMF would pay $120 million as part of a 2024 $1.4 billion loan package. As part of the deal, El Salvador would halt its strategy of accumulating Bitcoin.

While the IMF reported in July that the country’s government had not bought any BTC since December 2024, El Salvador’s Bitcoin Office continues to announce BTC buys. Shifting from its typical plan of acquiring one Bitcoin per day, El Salvador in November purchased over 1,000 BTC for its national coffers despite that month’s sharp market downturn. 

El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021 and started scooping up the premier crypto as part of a strategy largely driven by millennial President Nayib Bukele. The tiny Latin American nation has now amassed about 7,509 BTC, worth approximately $659 million at press time.

The IMF indicated in the Monday statement that El Salvador’s economy is expanding at a faster-than-anticipated pace, driven by high confidence, record remittances, and increased investment. The agency projects real GDP growth of about 4% for the Bitcoin-friendly nation, adding that the 2026 outlook is “very good.”

Meanwhile, El Salvador and the International Monetary Fund have made progress on the second review of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) agreement.

“Close engagement with the Salvadoran authorities is expected to continue in the period ahead to reach a staff-level agreement on all policies and reforms needed to complete the second review of the EFF program,” the IMF explained.

Bitcoin’s price has slid 31.2% from October’s all-time high of $126,000. The asset is now trading hands at $86,772 at press time, data from CoinGecko shows.