The International Monetary Fund has reversed course on one of its more awkward claims about El Salvador’s Bitcoin stash. After spending the better part of a year insisting that the country’s reported Bitcoin accumulation was nothing more than coins being shuffled between government wallets, the IMF now confirms that El Salvador’s holdings have genuinely grown, funded entirely by private donations rather than public coffers.
The concession matters because it removes a cloud that had been hanging over El Salvador’s $1.4 billion Extended Fund Facility program. A staff-level agreement covering the second and third reviews of that program could unlock roughly $140 million in disbursements, pending Executive Board approval.
From wallet shuffling to real growth
Rewind to about a year ago. The IMF’s position was that El Salvador’s Bitcoin reserve hadn’t actually increased at all. The fund argued that what looked like purchases were simply internal transfers, coins moving from one government-controlled wallet to another with no net change in holdings.
Now the IMF has formally updated its assessment. Every Bitcoin added to the government’s holdings since June 27, 2025, came from private donations, not from taxpayer money. El Salvador’s total stash sits at approximately 7,764 BTC as of early September 2026.
The shift from “nothing changed” to “it grew, but through donations” is notable. It means the IMF is acknowledging real accumulation while simultaneously confirming that El Salvador hasn’t violated the core condition of its bailout arrangement: no public funds flowing into speculative crypto positions.
The Chivo wallet gets a new owner
El Salvador has transferred majority ownership and operational control of Chivo, its government-backed Bitcoin wallet, to a private operator. The government retains a minority stake and custodial responsibilities, but the day-to-day management is no longer a state function.
Chivo launched in September 2021 as the flagship tool for El Salvador’s Bitcoin legal tender experiment. It came preloaded with $30 in Bitcoin for every citizen who signed up. The privatization aligns with the IMF’s broader preference for reducing the state’s direct exposure to Bitcoin-related operations, a condition baked into the Extended Fund Facility agreement that kicked off in February 2025.
What the IMF deal means financially
The staff-level agreement announced on September 3, 2026, covers combined second and third reviews of El Salvador’s EFF program. If the Executive Board signs off, it would release approximately $140 million, equivalent to SDR 101.96 million in the IMF’s own accounting currency.
The IMF has also bumped its economic forecast for El Salvador, projecting real GDP growth of 4.5% for 2026.
The bigger picture for sovereign Bitcoin strategies
The IMF’s updated assessment adds nuance to the debate over El Salvador’s Bitcoin experiment. The fund is effectively confirming that El Salvador found a way to grow its Bitcoin reserves without violating its bailout terms. The rigid conditions the IMF has imposed — no public funds for Bitcoin purchases, wallet privatization, strict reporting requirements — illustrate how narrow the path is for any sovereign trying to integrate Bitcoin into its financial framework while maintaining access to traditional international lending.
The donation mechanism itself raises questions. Who exactly is donating thousands of Bitcoin to the Salvadoran government, and why? The IMF’s review confirms the source isn’t public money, but the identity and motivations of private donors remain an open question.