Bolivia studies El Salvador's experience in regulating cryptocurrencies
Date: 2025-08-01 Author: Henry Casey Categories: IN WORLD
The Central Bank of Bolivia has announced the start of cooperation with El Salvador to develop rules regulating the cryptocurrency market, as well as to exchange tools for monitoring crypto transactions. In Bolivia, digital currencies are considered a viable alternative to traditional fiat money.
El Salvador became one of the first countries to legalize bitcoin as a means of payment. The agreement was signed by the acting head of the Central Bank of Bolivia Edwin Rojas Ulo and the head of the National Commission on Digital Assets of El Salvador Juan Carlos Reyes Garcia.
Elections in Bolivia are scheduled for August 17. In June 2024, the country lifted the ban on cryptocurrency transactions, allowing banking institutions to conduct transactions with bitcoin and stablecoins. Three months after the ban was lifted, the monthly cryptocurrency trading volume grew to $15.6 million, which is twice as much as the previous year and a half.
The positive dynamics continue in 2025: by the end of June, the total cryptocurrency trading volume in the country reached $294 million. In March, the Bolivian state oil and gas company Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos received permission to accept cryptocurrency to pay for imported fuel. This decision is due to the currency crisis and the shortage of dollars in the country. Since spring, some Bolivian stores have begun to indicate prices for goods in USDT stablecoins.
In the spring, the Salvadoran authorities signed an agreement with Paraguay on joint control of the cryptocurrency market. Regulators of the two countries intend to jointly combat illegal activities, including money laundering and terrorist financing.
Thus, Bolivia is moving towards a more active implementation of cryptocurrencies in the economy and adapting the experience of countries that already have legislation in this area to ensure the security and transparency of digital financial transactions.
