Key takeaways
- El Salvador's National Bitcoin Office says the government has no plans to launch or operate any stablecoin wallet.
- The Bitcoin Office says all state involvement officially ended with the sale of Chivo Wallet to a private operator.
- Coinbase says private company Modveon is launching Sivar on Coinbase infrastructure, according to a report from Bitcoin News.
El Salvador's National Bitcoin Office on September 29 replied directly to a Bloomberg report that said President Nayib Bukele is turning to dollar-backed stablecoins. The office said the Government of El Salvador has no plans to launch or operate any bitcoin, crypto, or stablecoin wallet.
Two sentences from the Bitcoin Office
The Bitcoin Office posted its reply on X on September 29, quoting Bloomberg's own post. Bloomberg's post said El Salvador was the first country to make Bitcoin legal tender and that President Nayib Bukele is turning to dollar-backed stablecoins.
The National Bitcoin Office answered Bloomberg's post with a statement of its own:
The Government of El Salvador has no plans to launch or operate any bitcoin, crypto or stablecoin wallet. With the recent sale of Chivo Wallet to a private operator, all state involvement has officially ended.
Bitcoin News independently reported the same Bitcoin Office statement and said the Bitcoin Office called the Bloomberg article "fake news." That phrase comes from the Bitcoin News account and does not appear in the text of the office's own post.
The Bitcoin Office and Bitcoin News both posted the denial on September 29, the same day as the Bloomberg piece, and the two posts corroborate each other.
Coinbase says Sivar is a private launch
Coinbase announced the same day that Sivar is being launched by private company Modveon using Coinbase infrastructure, according to Bitcoin News.
According to Bitcoin News, Coinbase said Sivar settles on the Base chain, charges a flat $2 fee, offers more than 1,000 cash-out locations, and has more than 25,000 Salvadoran signups.
Modveon is a private company and Sivar is being launched using Coinbase infrastructure, which is a different arrangement from a government wallet. The Bitcoin Office said the Government of El Salvador has no plans to launch or operate any bitcoin, crypto, or stablecoin wallet.
Chivo's sale ends the state's wallet role
The Bitcoin Office tied its denial to Chivo Wallet. With the recent sale of Chivo Wallet to a private operator, the office said, all state involvement has officially ended.
The office's post described the buyer of Chivo Wallet only as a private operator. Its statement covered every category at once, saying the government has no plans to launch or operate any bitcoin, crypto, or stablecoin wallet.
Sivar is being launched by private company Modveon using Coinbase infrastructure, and Chivo Wallet was sold to a private operator. The Bitcoin Office said all state involvement has officially ended.
Why It Matters
Bitcoin Breakdown's view is that grassroots educational initiatives keep spreading Bitcoin adoption in El Salvador and worldwide regardless of whether major outlets cover them. The Bitcoin Office's statement that the Government of El Salvador has no plans to launch or operate any bitcoin, crypto, or stablecoin wallet fits that view, because adoption does not depend on a state launching or operating a wallet. Private company Modveon can launch Sivar using Coinbase infrastructure and compete for Salvadoran signups, while Bitcoin held in self-custody needs no government wallet, state app, or corporate settlement layer. With the sale of Chivo Wallet to a private operator and all state involvement officially ended, governments need only get out of the way of grassroots Bitcoin adoption in El Salvador.
