The World Bank refuses to assist El Salvador’s implementation of bitcoin as legal tender

El Salvador passed a new law to adopt bitcoin as legal tender on June 9, becoming the first country to do so. But, the World Bank will not assist El Salvador in implementing it, Reuters reported on June 17.

“We are committed to helping El Salvador in numerous ways, including for currency transparency and regulatory processes,” a World Bank spokesperson told Reuters. “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, the finance minister of El Salvador, Alejandro Zelaya, said the country did seek technical assistance from the World Bank.