El Salvador Won't Bow To IMF Pressure To Drop Bitcoin Legal Tender: Treasury Minister

El Salvador's treasury minister Alejandro Zelaya recently expressed his anger over the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) sustained pressure to drop Bitcoin BTC/USD as legal tender in his country, and said that it will have no result.

What Happened: During an interview, Zelaya told a local television journalist that "no international organization is going to make us do anything, anything at all," referring to pressures to drop the country's adoption of Bitcoin, according to a Monday ABC News report.

See Also: IS BITCOIN A GOOD INVESTMENT? 

The minister highlighted that Bitcoin's adoption is a question of "sovereignty" and said that "countries are sovereign nations, and they take sovereign decisions about public policy."

Zelaya also claimed that El Salvador complies with all financial transaction and money laundering rules.

As recently reported, the IMF has criticized El Salvador's Bitcoin adoption once again, urging the country to reverse its decision to make BTC legal tender. The international policy body said that utilizing the crypto as legal tender carried “large risks” related to financial stability, financial integrity and consumer protection.

The warnings had little impact, with some citizens recently sharing that they are fond of the adoption. It should be noted that there were violent protests against the move in September 2021. El Salvador's president Nayib Bukele seems particularly optimistic about the future of Bitcoin and forecasted a “gigantic price increase” earlier this week.

Photo: Courtesy of Jorge Quinteros on Flickr

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Posted In: CryptocurrencyMarketsAlejandro ZelayaInternational Monetary FundNayib Bukele
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