IMF Urges El Salvador to Drop Bitcoin

Image copyright: Richard Drew/AP [via Washington Post]

The Spin

Narrative A

Bukele is an aspiring dictator who has cracked down on independent institutions like the Supreme Court and who appears to be courting closer ties with authoritarian regimes around the world. The move to Bitcoin was a cynical and shortsighted populist ploy.

Narrative B

Although Bukele is controversial, and the jury is still out on how his bitcoin ventures will end, he has created a successful personality cult and helped empower the Salvadoran people--many of whom rely on remittances from family members abroad--by releasing them from dependence on foreign currencies and exploitative financial institutions.


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