How Nayib Bukele’s Bitcoin Bet Turned Profitable

Nayib Bukele has lashed out at critics after El Salvador’s Bitcoin (BTC) investment showed an unrealized profit of over $3.6 million

El Salvador, the only country to accumulate Bitcoin, had a strong conviction on the asset class. The country’s portfolio turned profitable after holding the asset throughout the bear market as Bitcoin hit $42,000.

Nayib Bukele Demands Apologies from Critics

El Salvador’s bold decision to make Bitcoin a legal tender received heavy criticism from the mainstream media and traditional finance institutions. Finally, Nayib Bukele, the President of El Salvador, wrote a post on X (Twitter), announcing that the country has unrealized profits of over $3.6 million. Bukele wrote:

“With the current Bitcoin market price, if we were to sell our Bitcoin, we would not only recover 100% of our investment but also make a profit of $3,620 277.13 (as of this moment).

Of course, we have no intention of selling; that has never been our objective. We are fully aware that the price will continue to fluctuate in the future, this doesn’t affect our long-term strategy.”

Read more: Top 9 Crypto Friendly Countries For Digital Assets Investors

During the lows of November 2022, the country had unrealized losses of over $54 million. Yet, Bukele announced that El Salvador would buy one Bitcoin every day.

The bear market brought heavy criticism to El Salvador’s Bitcoin experiment from the mainstream media. Not just the mainstream media, but the likes of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) slammed El Salvador’s Bitcoin adoption.

Calling out the mainstream media companies, Bukele wrote:

“Nonetheless, it is important that the naysayers and the authors of those hit pieces take back their statements. The responsible thing to do would be for them to issue retractions, offer apologies, or, at the very least, acknowledge that El Salvador is now yielding a profit, just as they repeatedly reported that we were incurring losses.

“If they consider themselves true journalists, they should report this new reality with the same intensity they reported the previous one.”

While El Salvador’s portfolio was profitable when Bukele posted on X, it had an unrealized loss of 2.34% during press time. Nayib Tracker, a website that tracks the Bitcoin portfolio of El Salvador, shows that the country holds 2,762 Bitcoin at an average price of $42,434.

Some citizens of El Salvador believe that Bitcoin brings fresh hope, pushes them to get a financial education, and empowers the unbanked. 

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For BeInCrypto’s latest Bitcoin (BTC) analysis, click here.