El Salvador gained $84M from Bitcoin holdings

El Salvador’s Bitcoin (BTC) holdings have yielded an unrealized profit of $84 million, with the treasury’s value increasing by 69% to over $206 million due to Bitcoin’s 250% appreciation over the past year.

According to data gathered from NayibTracker, since September 2021, El Salvador has seen its Bitcoin investments swell to an unrealized profit of $84 million. The value of its Bitcoin treasury has soared to more than $206 million.

This marks a 69% increase from El Salvador’s initial investment, thanks to the cryptocurrency’s 250% appreciation over the past year. El Salvador now possesses 2,681 BTC, bought across 12 transactions at an average price of $42,600 each.

El Salvador became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender alongside the U.S. dollar in 2021, following the enactment of the “Bitcoin Law.” This legislation allows for the use of Bitcoin in transactions for goods, services, and taxes within the country. The country is also working to launch its “Volcano Bonds” backed by Bitcoin.

President Nayib Bukele has shared that El Salvador is generating additional Bitcoin revenue through various services. These revenue streams include a citizenship passport program, converting Bitcoin to U.S. dollars for local businesses, proceeds from Bitcoin mining operations and government service fees.

+ #BTC revenue from our passport program
+ Revenue from converting #BTC to USD for local businesses
+ #BTC from mining
+ #BTC revenue from government services https://t.co/O1sjKoJRiq

— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) March 11, 2024

El Salvador also launched the “Freedom VISA” program in December. The program offers residency to up to 1,000 individuals yearly who invest a minimum of $1 million in Bitcoin or Tether (USDT) stablecoins.

Those who qualify are granted long-term residency permits and can eventually apply for full citizenship. Application to the program also costs a non-refundable fee of $999 in either Bitcoin or USDT. Tether announced that the firm will be managing the technical aspects of the project, by providing technology and payment infrastructure.