According to the President of El-Salvador, its citizens will not be forced in any way at all to use the government’s new “Chivo” Bitcoin wallet.
Citizens will not be forced to use the government-issued “Chivo” Bitcoin wallet, according to the latest pronouncement from El Salvador’s pro-Bitcoin president, Nayib Bukele.
El Salvador’s President Bukele announced in a tweet on June 29 that he wanted to clear up any misunderstandings about the government’s wallet application following the country’s Bitcoin law’s passage on June 9, which will take effect on September 7.
Chivo, which is El Salvadorean slang for “cool,” is the name of the new Bitcoin wallet, which can carry both Bitcoin and US cash.
It is simply one of many crypto wallets that may be utilized, according to Bukele, who emphasizes its interoperability with other wallet apps.
Aclarando la desinformación que están tratando de esparcir acerca de la #LeyBitcoin:
1. La wallet del Gobierno solo es una de tantas wallets que se pueden usar.
2. La @chivowallet será totalmente compatible con otras wallets.
Sigue…
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) June 28, 2021
To ease privacy fears, he emphasized that the government already has the personal information requested by the wallet, underlining that any demands for personal data within the app are for security reasons.
Bukele further stated that the Chivo wallet will not charge any fees or commissions for transfers, stating that, unlike traditional crypto exchanges, it will not take a cut when converting BTC to USD and vice versa, and that, unlike credit cards, merchants and users will not be charged commissions.
The president indicated that any money held or received in USD or BTC in the Chivo wallet can be withdrawn into USD currency at any moment now that the government has completed the roll-out of 200 new physical Bitcoin ATM branches, called “Chivo Points” or “Chivo ATMs.”
The president also stated that the $30 government BTC giveaway planned on June 25 will not be convertible into US dollars, highlighting the administration’s desire to promote Bitcoin and the Chivo wallet.
According to a Nasdaq report, the new digital wallet in Central America has the potential to change the country’s monetary policies.
Approximately 70% of El Salvador’s population lacks access to bank accounts or any other financial services.
