El Salvador Buys 21 More BTC Units

El Salvador in Central America has just purchased a total of 21 additional bitcoins. The country has made a habit of “buying dips” every time bitcoin’s price goes lower and this incident was no exception.

El Salvador Adds to Its BTC Stash

The country initially made headlines several months ago when it was announced it was working on a bitcoin-based financial agenda that would see the cryptocurrency – number one in the world – become legal tender. This meant it could be used alongside the U.S. dollar, which El Salvador had long been dependent on. Customers could use BTC to purchase everyday goods and services, and businesses were required to accept BTC as payment.

The journey has been relatively rocky in many ways, with El Salvador initially seeking help from organizations like the World Bank in implementing its plans. However, the World Bank ungraciously turned the nation down, saying that bitcoin couldn’t be taken seriously due to its volatility.

Nevertheless, the Central American country chose not to listen, something that has ultimately proven fruitful but not without its ups and downs. For example, in trying to give residents of El Salvador $30 in BTC to help them get used to the idea of paying with digital currency, the nation unveiled what’s come to be known as the “Chivo” wallet, which is slang for “cool.” The wallet has had several technical problems and has been down or inactive on many occasions. This has prevented people from gaining access to their assets from time to time.

In addition, the people of El Salvador have not been entirely open to the idea of using BTC, and the new agenda has caused many to engage in public protests. Several have claimed that bitcoin is primarily used for illicit purposes. They were fine using USD for transactions and didn’t want to open themselves up to fraud or other problems allegedly associated with BTC.

In a series of tweets, El Salvador’s president Nayib Bukele made the announcement that 21 bitcoins were added to the country’s financial roster and that the circumstances were rather unique. He said:

Today is the last 21st day of the year 21 of the 21st century. Coincidence? I don’t think so!

He even held the purchase until after 11 pm, which read 21:21:21 on the world clock. He wrote on the social media platform:

There you go.

A Whole New Way of Doing Business

With that message was a picture of the receipt showing the transaction, which was valued at a little more than $1 million at the time it occurred.

At 40 years of age, Bukele has been a huge bitcoin fan for some time. In bringing the currency to his country as an official form of payment, he has often joked that he is not the President, but rather the “CEO of El Salvador.”

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