Bitcoin Payments Are Drying Up at El Salvador’s Bitcoin Beach

Everyday BTC use appears to be declining in El Salvador, with staff at an El Zonte eatery reporting just one Bitcoin transaction for the month, according to Bitcoin Core contributor Jon Atack.

Atack, who lives in El Salvador, said restaurant staff told him his lunch bill was their only Bitcoin payment this month. Staff also reported that customers are increasingly using cards instead of BTC for everyday purchases.

Analysts have attributed weaker merchant transaction activity to the “HODL” mindset, in which Bitcoin holders prefer to keep the asset as a long-term store of value rather than spend it, as well as the cryptocurrency’s price volatility. 

The shift followed El Salvador’s overhaul of its Bitcoin rules under its International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan agreement, making cryptocurrency acceptance voluntary for private-sector merchants rather than mandatory.

Source: Cryptopolitan