Bolivia’s Central Bank has signed a landmark agreement with El Salvador to accelerate cryptocurrency adoption, calling crypto a “viable and reliable alternative” to fiat currencies.
The memorandum of understanding, signed by the Central Bank of Bolivia Acting President Edwin Rojas Ulo and Juan Carlos Reyes García, Head of El Salvador’s National Commission of Digital Assets (CNAD), is aimed at developing crypto policies and sharing intelligence tools.
This deal, effective immediately and indefinite in duration, comes as Bolivia struggles with a deepening currency crisis. The country’s foreign exchange reserves have plunged 98%, from $12.7 billion in 2014 to just $165 million in April 2025, according to Trading Economics.
Crypto is gaining popularity fast. Bolivia lifted its long-standing crypto ban in June 2024, allowing banks to process Bitcoin and stablecoin transactions. Ever since, trading volumes have since doubled to reach 294 million by the mid of 2025.
Even state-owned oil company YPFB has been cleared to accept crypto for fuel imports due to US dollar shortages. Some shops have started pricing goods in the USDT stablecoin.
El Salvador, the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021, has a regulatory experience that Bolivia can use to prevent policy mistakes.
The crypto pact also comes ahead of Bolivia’s general election on August 17. With economic uncertainty rising, many Bolivians hope for political change after nearly two decades of socialist rule.
Polymarket predicts only a 6% chance that a single candidate will win the first round outright. A potential runoff is scheduled for October 19.
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