El Salvador continued its Bitcoin accumulation strategy, adding 6 new Bitcoins to its reserves on March 10, instead of its usual commitment to buy 1 Bitcoin per day.
The decision comes amid mounting pressure from the International Monetary Fund, which is calling on the government to back away from adopting the cryptocurrency.
The National Bitcoin Office announced the move via its X platform, noting that the government purchased 5 additional Bitcoins in addition to its routine purchases.
This brings the country’s total holdings to 6,111.18 Bitcoins, worth around $493 million at current market prices.
This coincides with the continued decline in the price of Bitcoin, which has remained hovering around $80,000.
El Salvador has seen similar purchases outside its daily routine in recent months, adding 12 Bitcoins on January 19, 11 Bitcoins on February 4, and another 5 Bitcoins on March 3.
Despite signing a $1.4 billion financing agreement with the International Monetary Fund in December 2024, which included the abolition of Bitcoin’s legal tender status and the reduction of the public sector’s role in Bitcoin transactions, the government has remained firm in its position.
The IMF’s pressure increased on March 3 when it submitted a new request for an expanded fiscal arrangement for El Salvador, which includes conditions that prevent voluntary Bitcoin accumulation by the public sector and limit the issuance of Bitcoin-linked debt instruments.
However, President Nayib Bukele dismissed these demands as “whining,” and stressed that his country would not stop buying Bitcoin, adding:
We did not stop when the world abandoned us, we will not stop now and we will not stop in the future.
