Little comment on the details of the IMF-Bukele deal. My take on the general bending-of-the-knee here I already gave a week ago.

I think people are not paying enough attention to one aspect of the language here (distracted as they understandably are by the first 4 sentences): "Transparency, regulation, and supervision of digital assets will be enhanced to safeguard ..." . Here the IMF is reasserting the right of the global banking system to prevent autonomous control of money using Bitcoin in El Salvador. Note that the banks wilfully ignored the bitcoin law for 3 years despite on more than one occasion Bukele claiming he would address this and punish them, but he never did. And now, not only have they been vindicated and will continue to persecute bitcoin usage aggressively, but even very concrete every day things - using Bitcoin ATMs here will imo, after a while, be reduced and phased out - no longer will you be able to buy and sell hundreds of dollars just with a random phone number. If the ATMs persist at all, they will require ID cards and/or (more likely) the use of accounts regulated and approved by the banking system/regulators. And since Chivo will be phased out (most likely), then using bitcoin in stores will *mostly* disappear. Pessimistic take, but I think so. I give it 18 months before living on Bitcoin here will not be very practically possible any more. Hopefully I'm wrong!

#elsalvador