Was El Salvador’s decision to make Bitcoin legal tender a failure? Most citizens think so – poll

(Kitco News) El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele received high global praise from the crypto community for making his country the first to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender. But just over a year later, most Salvadorans see the move as a “failure”, according to the latest opinion poll.

The survey, conducted by the University of Central America (UCA), revealed that 75.6% of respondents never used cryptocurrency this year, and 77% consider crypto adoption “to have been a failure,” AFP reported citing the survey.

El Salvador made Bitcoin legal tender alongside the US dollar in early October 2021, allowing the use of cryptocurrency in any transaction, from buying a cup of coffee to buying property and paying taxes.

The adoption of Bitcoin “is the government’s most unpopular measure, the most criticized and the most disliked,” UCA Principal Andreu Oliva said when discussing the results of the polls.

Bitcoin is down 72% from a record high of $69,000 posted 11 months ago. The entire digital asset space is in the midst of a crypto winter, with analysts debating what catalyst will help the world’s largest cryptocurrency break free from the tight quarters it has been stuck in this fall.

Bitcoin last traded at $19,156.25, down 1.2% on the day. When Bukele made Bitcoin legal tender, the cryptocurrency traded for around $45,000.

“Bitcoin remains tightly wound after holding above its long-term support zone (~$18.3K-$19.5K) last week,” said Fairlead Strategies founder and managing partner Katie Stockton. “We remain bearish in the medium term, with price below the descending daily cloud. There is still heightened risk of a breakout, with bitcoin below the 50-day MA [near $19.7k], which will increase the risk of secondary support near ~$13.9K. Long-term momentum remains strongly negative despite oversold conditions. We do not yet have evidence of a long-term low for bitcoin.”

One of Bukele’s main arguments for adopting Bitcoin was that the public would save money on bank fees when receiving or transferring money from abroad, especially from/to the United States. Money was said to make up more than a quarter of El Salvador’s GDP.

However, the adoption does not seem very successful, given the poll’s data. The Salvadoran central bank also said in September that Bitcoin still only accounted for “less than two percent” of all remittances from emigrants.

Bukele used the massive sale over the summer to buy more Bitcoin, most recently acquiring another 80 Bitcoin in July with public money. El Salvador’s total Bitcoin reserves are at 2,381 units. The president is down over $61 million on his crypto investment.

The public also looked down on this move, with 77% of respondents saying they don’t want their president to continue spending “public money to buy Bitcoin.”

Last week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a report that El Salvador’s economy will grow by just 1.7% in 2023, which will feel like a recession.

But despite the unpopular Bitcoin decision and bleak economic outlook, Bukele remains a popular president, with the highest approval ratings in Latin America, according to a CID Gallup poll published last week.

Approval of the performance of Latin American presidents.#CIDGallup #Cid Latin America #galluppanama #El Salvador #Costa Rica #The Dominican Republic #honduras #Colombia #Mexico #Nicaragua #argentina #Venezuela #Guatemala #Panama #Peru #ecuador #latinoamerica pic.twitter.com/yaQkNMeqsV

— CID Gallup (@cidgallup) 14 October 2022