SAN SALVADOR/NEW YORK: The World Bank said on Wednesday it could not assist El Salvador’s bitcoin implementation given environmental and transparency drawbacks.
“We are committed to helping El Salvador in numerous ways including for currency transparency and regulatory processes,” said a World Bank spokesperson via email.
“While the government did approach us for assistance on bitcoin, this is not something the World Bank can support given the environmental and transparency shortcomings.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Salvadoran Finance Minister Alejandro Zelaya said the country had sought technical assistance from the Bank as it seeks to use bitcoin as a parallel legal tender alongside the US dollar.
The minister also said ongoing negotiations with the International Monetary Fund have been successful, though the fund said last week it saw “macroeconomic, financial and legal issues” with the country’s adoption of bitcoin.
Zelaya said on Wednesday the IMF was “not against” the bitcoin implementation. The IMF did not respond to a request for comment.
Investors have recently demanded higher premiums to hold Salvadoran debt, on growing concerns over the completion of the IMF deal, key to patching budget gaps through 2023.
On Wednesday, bonds sold off across the curve with the 2032 issue down more than 2 cents at 96.25 cents on the dollar. The spread of Salvadoran debt to US Treasuries dipped to 705 basis points after hitting on Tuesday a four-month high of 725 bps.
“There is no fast track for a solution on an IMF program and even uncertainty on whether the bitcoin proposal is compatible with diplomatic US (or) multilateral relations,” said Siobhan Morden, head of Latin America fixed income strategy at Amherst Pierpont Securities in New York.
El Salvador this month became the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, with President Nayib Bukele touting the cryptocurrency’s potential as a remittance currency for Salvadorans overseas.
This month, Bukele also pulled out of an anticorruption accord with the Organization of American States, which dismayed the US government, as Washington looks to stem corruption in Central America as part of its immigration policy.
“The recognition of a ‘Bukele’ risk premium has probably done some permanent damage to investor sentiment,” Morden said on her client note.
However, the market may be focusing too much on the news headlines and not enough on the possibility of a deal with the IMF, according to Shamaila Khan, head of EM debt strategies at AllianceBernstein in New York.
“It is important for El Salvador to get the IMF program done. If it was lost on them, they wouldn’t have the conversations,” she said.
“Our view is too much risk is priced in at these levels.”
World Bank rejects El Salvador request for help on bitcoin implementation
https://arab.news/6jwgm
World Bank rejects El Salvador request for help on bitcoin implementation
- El Salvador this month became the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender
- World Bank expressed reservations over the bitcoin's "environmental and transparency shortcomings”
Saudi stock market opens its doors to foreign investors
RIYADH: Foreigners will be able to invest directly in Saudi Arabia’s stock market from Feb. 1, the Kingdom’s Capital Market Authority has announced.
The CMA’s board has approved a regulatory change which will mean the capital market, across all its segments, will be accessible to investors from around the world for direct participation.
According to a statement, the approved amendments aim to expand and diversify the base of those permitted to invest in the Main Market, thereby supporting investment inflows and enhancing market liquidity.
International investors' ownership in the capital market exceeded SR590 billion ($157.32 billion) by the end of the third quarter of 2025, while international investments in the main market reached approximately SR519 billion during the same period — an annual rise of 4 percent.
“The approved amendments eliminated the concept of the Qualified Foreign Investor in the Main Market, thereby allowing all categories of foreign investors to access the market without the need to meet qualification requirements,” said the CMA, adding: “It also eliminated the regulatory framework governing swap agreements, which were used as an option to enable non-resident foreign investors to obtain economic benefits only from listed securities, and the allowance of direct investment in shares listed on the Main Market.”
In July, the CMA approved measures to simplify the procedures for opening and operating investment accounts for certain categories of investors. These included natural foreign investors residing in one of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, as well as those who had previously resided in the Kingdom or in any GCC country.
This step represented an interim phase leading up to the decision announced today, with the aim of increasing confidence among participants in the Main Market and supporting the local economy.
Saudi Arabia, which is more than halfway through an economic plan to reduce its dependence on oil, has been trying to attract foreign investors, including by establishing exchange-traded funds with Asian partners in Japan and Hong Kong.
