Key facts:
Salvadorans are sending more and more remittances to their families, but not in bitcoin.
The Central American country barely receives USD 10 million in cryptocurrencies per month.
During the first five months of this year, El Salvador has received 2,600 bitcoins (BTC) through the Chivo Wallet for remittances that migrant workers send to their families.
At the price of the cryptocurrency today, the figure is equivalent to 52 million dollars and represents 1.6% of the more than 3,000 million dollars that the country received during these months through other platforms.
The data of the Central Reserve Bank (BCR) of El Salvador show that Salvadorans who live outside the country have maintained a constant flow of remittances through the digital portfolio developed by the government. However, most opt for other available alternatives, even though the Chivo Wallet is commission-free.
It is clear that sending remittances in bitcoin through the Chivo Wallet does not seem to represent savings for salvadoranseven though this was one of the reasons that prompted the adoption of the cryptoactive as legal tender in September of last year.
At that time it was said that Salvadorans they could save up to $400 million a year if migrants used bitcoin to send money home.
As CriptoNoticias has reported in the past, Complaints of identity theft through the Chivo app abound in the Central American country. By the beginning of November, when the wallet had been in operation for two months, there were already more than 300 complaints, which may be one of the reasons why Salvadorans prefer other alternatives to send their remittances.
Now, the president of the Central Reserve Bank (BCR), Douglas Rodríguez, reported a growth of 3.9% in remittances received in the country, when comparing the figures with the same period last year.
Nevertheless, that increase is almost imperceptible when the figures of remittances sent in bitcoin are reviewed. However, there is some stability in the monthly amounts sent.
During the first five months of the year, an average of USD 10 million in cryptocurrencies were processed per month, and only in the month of May there was an increase of USD 12.5 million.
In any case, it is notorious that the figure has grown when compared to the amount received in the country shortly after the entry into force of the Bitcoin Law. This given that, In September of last year, USD 2.6 million in BTC was sent to El Salvador.