Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin Rollout in El Salvador Looks Like a Bust, Survey Finds
- Companies say vast majority of sales are still in USD
- Respondents say they don’t trust Bitcoin or the digital wallet
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Bitcoin is struggling to gain traction in El Salvador -- the first country to accept it as legal tender -- after many Salvadorans stopped using the government’s Bitcoin wallet known as Chivo and only a tiny fraction reported using it for remittances, taxes and daily purchases.
A survey by the U.S. National Bureau of Economic Research in partnership with Cid Gallup found that only 20% of respondents in El Salvador continued using the Chivo wallet after downloading it and spending the initial $30 signup bonus. Most downloads occurred last September, when Bitcoin was first authorized for use in El Salvador allongside the dollar, and virtually no one has installed Chivo on their phone in 2022, according to the study.