The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says El Salvador’s decision to make Bitcoin (BTC) legal tender poses potential risks that must be assessed.
This week El Salvador became the first country in the world to treat the benchmark cryptocurrency as a legal payment instrument, approving a new law that requires businesses to accept Bitcoin in exchange for goods and services.
During a press briefing in Washington on Thursday, IMF spokesperson Gerry Rice reportedly outlined the potential implications of the crypto embrace.
“Adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender raises a number of macroeconomic, financial and legal issues that require very careful analysis.
We are following developments closely, and we’ll continue our consultations with the authorities.”
El Salvador is currently in talks with the IMF about a potential credit program. Reuters reports that an IMF team is meeting President Nayib Bukele to discuss the Bitcoin law.
The newly approved bill places Bitcoin on equal footing with the US dollar, which El Salvador adopted as its official currency in 2001.
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