As of August 2024, cryptocurrency wallet remittances to El Salvador are down 3.51% compared to the same period in 2023. According to the Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador (BCR), remittances to El Salvador via crypto wallets in 2024 totaled $57.38 million.
The figures from the Salvadoran Reserve Bank indicate that this year’s remittances via Crypto wallets have decreased by $2.09 million compared to what it received in the same months of 2023.
In August 2024, El Salvador received $7.71 million in crypto remittances, reflecting a $1.38 million increase (21.80%) compared to August 2023. This is the third month in 2024 where crypto remittances exceeded those of the same month in 2023.
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Change 2023-2024 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | — | 10.06 | 8.37 | 6.77 | -1.60 (-19.12%) |
| February | — | 9.39 | 7.61 | 6.39 | -1.22 (-16.03%) |
| March | — | 9.83 | 8.53 | 8.00 | -0.53 (-6.21%) |
| April | — | 10.14 | 7.45 | 7.67 | 0.22 (2.95%) |
| May | — | 12.56 | 7.69 | 6.82 | -0.87 (-11.31%) |
| June | — | 11.52 | 7.01 | 6.83 | -0.18 (-2.57%) |
| July | — | 10.37 | 6.48 | 7.19 | 0.71 (10.96%) |
| August | — | 10.92 | 6.33 | 7.71 | 1.38 (21.80%) |
| September | 1.99 | 10.78 | 6.02 | ||
| October | 17.92 | 10.18 | 5.40 | ||
| November | 12.27 | 10.68 | 5.45 | ||
| December | 12.37 | 10.29 | 6.59 | ||
| Totals | 45.55 | 126.72 | 82.93 | 57.38 | -2.09 (-3.51% *YTD |
| Monthly Average | 11.14 | 10.56 | 6.91 | 7.17 |
SEE ALSO: El Salvador Bitcoins: A Nation’s Journey into Digital Currency
Thus far in 2024, remittances received through cryptocurrency wallets represent only 1.05% of the total.
In 2023, family remittances sent through cryptocurrency wallets to El Salvador declined by $43.79 million (34.56%) compared to 2022, dropping from $126.72 million to $82.93 million.
Given the current trend, cryptocurrency wallet remittances to El Salvador are likely to decline further in 2024.
SEE ALSO: Year to Date, Remittances to El Salvador
In September 2021, El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender alongside the US dollar.
The Bukele administration adopted Bitcoin as a legal tender to boost financial inclusion, attract foreign investment, improve the economy, and make it easier for Salvadorans abroad to send remittances home.
However, three years after its adoption, most of the population does not use Bitcoin daily, and in 2024, only 1.04% are using it to send remittances to the country.
