President Bukele Reveals 2.1M Citizens Use Chivo Wallet in El Salvador

UTC by Ibukun Ogundare · 3 min read
President Bukele Reveals 2.1M Citizens Use Chivo Wallet in El Salvador
Photo: Nayib Bukele / Facebook

The large adoption of the Chivo wallet by the people of El Salvador is partially thanks to the $30 worth of Bitcoin that the government airdropped to every account holder.

According to El Salvador president Nayib Bukele, about 2.1 million citizens are actively using the Chivo Wallet. The El Salvadoran government introduced its virtual wallet, Chivo, to facilitate fast cross-border crypto transactions. To this effect, the authority launched 200 Chivo ATMs in El Salvador. Also, the Chivo virtual wallet is available for downloads on both App Store and Google Play Store.

Chivo Wallet sees 2.1 Million Active Users in El Salvador

Since El Salvador officially adopted Bitcoin as a legal tender earlier this month, president Bukele said one-third of citizens actively use the Chivo Wallet. In a tweet posted on the 25th of September, the president added that the Chivo wallet now has more users than banks in El Salvador.

Hence, the tweet has attracted thousands of likes and comments, including a reaction from MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) CEO Michael Saylor. Saylor, a committed Bitcoin fan, said that BTC is the hope for El Salvadorans.

The large adoption of the Chivo wallet by the people of El Salvador is partially thanks to the $30 worth of Bitcoin that the government airdropped to every account holder. Bukele’s recent revelation on the active users of the Chivo wallet shows that the Bitcoin law is gradually taking hold in El Salvador. As many are receptive to the law, some are protesting against Bitcoin as a legal tender.

El Salvadorans Protest Against Bitcoin Law

Reports showed that some protesters burnt down a new Bitcoin machine in San Salvador, the nation’s capital. Also, the machine was defaced with several anti-Bitcoin signs, with one saying, “democracy is not for sale.” The protesters came together to show their disapproval of the Bitcoin law. During the protest, some of them carried placards showing “Bukele Dictator” and “No to Bitcoin. “Respect the Constitutions,” and more anti-BTC signs.

President Bukele is a BTC bull who sees Bitcoin as an “open and free system.” While speaking on the “What Bitcoin Didi” podcast in June, Bukele noted that there is not much difference in adopting Bitcoin now as the country adopted the US Dollar in 2001. The president said:

“So, the people don’t have to trust us. They have to trust the system, and we trust the system.”

El Salvador’s Bitcoin adoption has triggered new moves from some countries now looking to emulate the Bitcoin law. In Ukraine, the parliament recently enacted a law to legalize and regulate crypto in the country. Ukrainian professor Vyacheslav Evgenyev, Bitcoin could be a legal tender in the country in 2023.

Currently, Bitcoin is up 4.49% to $44,109.

Bitcoin News, Cryptocurrency News, News
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