El Salvador flag and Bitcoin reserve displayed behind an institutional boundary

El Salvador Gets $138 Million IMF Release While Bitcoin Reserve Rules Stay Tight

By Isaac • October 4, 2026 11:12 pm • Comments

El Salvador has cleared another major review of its International Monetary Fund program, unlocking roughly $138 million while keeping strict limits around the country’s Bitcoin strategy.

The IMF Executive Board completed the second and third reviews of El Salvador’s 40-month Extended Fund Facility on October 1. The decision allows an immediate disbursement of SDR 101.96 million, or about $138 million, from a program worth roughly $1.4 billion.

But the approval was not a clean endorsement of unrestricted Bitcoin accumulation. The International Monetary Fund said El Salvador missed certain performance criteria tied to Bitcoin accumulation.

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The board granted waivers after corrective measures and renewed commitments from the government. It also said no further accumulation is expected beyond documented donations.

The review credited stronger reserve and liquidity buffers, fiscal consolidation and progress on financial-sector reforms. It also called for the remaining public exposure to the Chivo wallet to be unwound and for clearer disclosure of public crypto holdings.

The 40-month arrangement was approved in February 2025 and carries total access of about $1.4 billion. The latest disbursement therefore keeps a much broader economic program moving while preserving Bitcoin-specific conditions.

The practical message is straightforward: financing continues, the reserve remains, but state-funded buying is not being reopened under the program.

The waiver did not remove the Bitcoin limits

That wording leaves room for the reported balance to rise without public money being used, but it also places a heavy burden on transparency. Future additions need a clear paper trail.

The Fund also said El Salvador has transferred majority ownership and control of the Chivo wallet to a private operator. It wants the remaining public-sector exposure unwound and is pressing for stronger disclosure of public crypto holdings, tighter oversight of digital-asset providers and changes to the Digital Asset Issuance Law where appropriate.

CryptoSlate reports that government-linked holdings were recently near 7,794 BTC and valued around $666 million at the market price used for that calculation. The IMF did not provide that dollar valuation.

The report explains that waivers kept financing available despite earlier accumulation breaches. It also separates documented donations from government-funded purchases, a distinction that will remain central in future reviews.

The Chivo wallet transfer is another separate issue. Majority ownership and control moved to a private operator, but the Fund still wants residual public exposure unwound and stronger disclosure around the assets the public sector controls.

That leaves future reviews focused on provenance as much as balance. A larger wallet total can comply if additions are documented donations, while unexplained accumulation could trigger another waiver request and threaten later financing.

A rising Bitcoin price changes the headline number

Bitcoin’s recent strength helps explain why the reserve’s dollar value attracts so much attention. Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds began October with fresh inflows, adding institutional demand as BTC pushed through the mid-$80,000 range.

That price movement can make the reserve look larger even when the coin count does not change. It is important to separate three different things: the number of Bitcoin controlled by government-linked wallets, the source of any new coins and the dollar value at a particular moment.

A higher BTC price can lift the reserve’s mark-to-market value by tens of millions of dollars without a single new coin being added. A pullback can erase that apparent gain just as quickly.

The IMF’s concern is less about the daily valuation than about public-sector risk, funding sources and disclosure.

The broader program remains on track

Outside Bitcoin, the IMF said El Salvador’s economy has performed better than expected. It projected 4.5% real GDP growth for 2026, cited stronger liquidity and reserve buffers, and said fiscal consolidation had advanced broadly in line with program objectives.

The review also pointed to progress in financial-sector reforms, fiscal transparency and anti-money-laundering controls. At the same time, the Fund wants continued pension and civil-service reforms, stronger governance and better public reporting.

That mix explains why the board released the money despite the missed Bitcoin criteria. The IMF judged the broader program strong enough to continue, while using waivers and renewed commitments to keep the crypto restrictions in place.

What comes next

El Salvador now has access to the new tranche, but its Bitcoin policy will remain under scrutiny at future reviews. The key questions are whether additions can be documented as private donations, whether the Chivo unwind is completed, and whether public crypto holdings become easier to audit.

The reserve survived this review. The daily-buying narrative did not.

Under the current program, the government can benefit from Bitcoin’s price appreciation and hold documented donations. A return to publicly funded accumulation would put the next IMF review back in jeopardy.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice.

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