TL;DR Breakdown
- Salvadorians seeing their BTC disappear in their chivo wallet.
- President Bukele unresponsive to query of disappearing coins.
- Myriad of challenges El Salvador has faced since going crypto.
In what can be described as a mystery, Salvadorians have begun making complaints of Bitcoin disappearing from their state-backed Chivo wallet apps.
Local newspaper in El Salvador, The New Scientist, have reported more than 50 cases of missing Bitcoin from the mobile wallets of Salvadorians.
According to a Twitter user tweeting under the pseudonym El Comisonado, the problem of disappearing coin is one issue people have been complaining about and are yet to get any response from the President, Nayib Bukele.
The Twitter user complained that the government has not responded, nor does it acknowledge the errors as many Salvadorians have waited for months to get a response or refund, all to no avail.
The New Scientist reports that Zaira Navas—a member of the El Salvador National Civil Police—and Rogzy—a Bitcoin commentator—have experienced similar issues. The police said very few people use Chivo because many do not know how it works.
Navas added that Chivo is secure and no one can verify it since the code is not open source.
Ever since the Central American country made the number one crypto a legal tender, it has recorded several successes and made real progress. However, it has equally faced a myriad of challenges and problems, one of which is this case of disappearing coin.
Other challenges El Salvador have faced since adopting Bitcoin
The idea of adopting Bitcoin was announced in Miami’s 2021 Bitcoin Conference by President Bukele.
Afterward, it has been problem upon problem for the Bukele. From citizens hitting the streets in protest against Bitcoin to world’s biggest financial institutions, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, criticizing the move.
Reportedly, Bukele has also been authoritarian with enforcing his crypto law, although he has shown such traits in the past. The president allegedly arrested outspoken critic Mario Gomez after criticizing the government’s policy without a warrant.
