What has happened to El Salvador after canceling bitcoin as legal tender?

This week allowed me to catch a glimpse of a nation in the midst of self-reinvention.

Written by: Efrat Fenigson

Translated by: AididiaoJP, Foresight News

Over the past week, I visited El Salvador for the third time in a year, and it is clear that the country is undergoing a true transformation—not just theoretical talk or superficial changes, but a fundamental shift in how people live, think, build, and envision the future. The moment that brought all of this together happened at a private dinner with President Nayib Bukele over the weekend, which I was fortunate to attend.

I have been following his work for several years. On my podcast, I have interviewed nine locals and expats living in El Salvador, as well as entrepreneurs, builders, community organizers, and ordinary citizens. A year ago, I tweeted that my dream was to meet him one day.

What I didn’t expect was that, when I approached him for a photo at the end of the dinner and said, “Hello, I’m Efrat,” before I could even introduce myself, he immediately replied:

“I know you, I’ve seen your podcast.”

That moment was unforgettable, because it made me feel that all my experiences this week were closely tied to the grand vision unfolding in this country.

The Nation’s Triple Vision

This week saw three events—“Regaining Health,” “Adopting Bitcoin,” and “Historic Bitcoin”—each revealing a different facet of El Salvador’s development trajectory.

The “Regaining Health Seminar,” led by Salvadoran doctor Kenneth Fernandez-Taylor, explored the intersection of physical health and sound money. Some discussions focused on how unsound money and a preference for long working hours shape people’s stress, uncertainty, and long-term health. In a country that has already regained public safety and is striving for economic freedom, the link between health and money is so intuitive, never abstract. Four years ago, when the world was descending into the “apocalyptic pandemic,” a health seminar gathering truth-seeking, freedom-loving doctors, healers, and experts would have seemed like a distant dream. But in El Salvador, dreams are becoming reality.

At the “Adopting Bitcoin” conference, I saw the foundational engine of this transformation. Circular economies like El Salvador’s “Bitcoin Beach” (El Zonte), “Berlin,” and “MurphLife” vividly demonstrate what happens when people earn, spend, and save in sats. Communities like “Bitcoin Babies,” “Orange Women,” or Argentina’s “La Crypta” emphasize that bitcoin belongs to everyone. Merchants naturally accept bitcoin. Children grow up in its atmosphere. “Mi Primer Bitcoin” announced its new chapter: providing materials, frameworks, and guidance for over 70 projects across more than 40 countries, supporting community-led bitcoin education. The startup exhibition area was full of founders who had set up offices here and launched their businesses from El Salvador. I kept hearing a common theme, very simple: Here, you can get things done.

Image: Michael Holloman Jr.

Bitcoin and El Salvador’s Historic Moment

But the highlight of the week, and the moment that set the tone for everything, was the “Historic Bitcoin” conference. This was the world’s first government-led bitcoin conference, organized by the Bitcoin Office (led by Stacy Herbert and her team) created by the Salvadoran government, and held in the National Palace and National Theater. These are highly symbolic landmarks, and holding a bitcoin conference in such solemn venues speaks louder than words. The halls were filled with ministers, entrepreneurs, and international speakers; voices from the US, Europe, Latin America, and Africa. Guests received a booklet titled “El Salvador, the Bitcoin Nation,” with President Bukele’s photo on the cover, making it clear that bitcoin is a national strategy here.

Photo: Efrat Fenigson

Outside in Gerardo Barrios Square, the conference extended into public spaces; the content was translated into Spanish and broadcast live to local families, students, and elders. Shops and stalls all accepted sats as payment, and bitcoin seemed to return to its natural habitat, blending into the city’s daily life, with the public becoming part of the conference.

Several announcements highlighted the country’s direction: The Ministry of Agriculture signed a cooperation agreement with “The Beef Initiative” to strengthen local beef production. Steak ‘n Shake announced El Salvador as its first stop in Latin America, accepting bitcoin from day one.

Image source: Translating El Salvador

The government announced plans to purchase Nvidia B300 chips, which, with the support of Hydra Host, have enough computing power to train and run advanced AI models locally. This is a step toward sovereign computing infrastructure, reducing dependence on big tech data centers and laying the foundation for El Salvador to build domestic AI capabilities. After recently raising $17 millions, Mempool announced it would register in El Salvador. With the support of Lina Seche and the Bitcoin Office, as part of the “Two Schools a Day” initiative to modernize and expand the nation’s education infrastructure, 500 classrooms will be renovated for bitcoin and financial education. Together, these initiatives paint a coherent picture: a nation building its future on multiple fronts in sync.

The presence of Ricardo Salinas added a highlight to the “Historic Bitcoin” conference. In his speech, he said, “El Salvador is on the right side of history,” and specifically pointed out the huge improvement in public safety: “(Here) it’s safer than Japan. I wish my country could be like this.” As one of Latin America’s most influential entrepreneurs, he voiced the shared feelings of many visitors this week.

Image: Efrat Fenigson

The Presidential Dinner

However, the clearest window into that future was at the dinner.

Image: El Salvador Bitcoin Office

Bukele is nothing like his cartoonish international image. He is sharp, quick-witted, humorous, and deeply knowledgeable about bitcoin culture. As soon as he sat down, he joked, “Guys, it’s over, bitcoin is done for,” just because the price had dropped below $100,000 that day. He is not the kind of politician who tries to appear folksy or sticks to a script; he truly knows his stuff and genuinely understands bitcoin.

When the conversation turned to bitcoin’s long-term trajectory, he said something that stuck with me: “Bitcoin should become a currency.”

Not an investment, not an asset class, but a currency. He clearly sees the end state and understands the path to get there. The communities using bitcoin in daily life are the backbone turning it from an idea into a functional monetary system.

His sharp wit is matched by his analytical insight. When Plan B Network director Giacomo Zucco was introduced as an “anarcho-capitalist,” Bukele immediately replied, “No problem, I’m friends with Milei too,” and kept jokingly calling him “that anarchist” throughout the dinner. When Wiz gifted him a samurai sword and Giacomo presented a bottle of rum called “Dictator” (a lighthearted jab at the media narrative), someone reminded Bukele that he doesn’t drink. He instantly replied, “No problem, I don’t swing swords often either.”

At the end of the dinner, Giacomo thanked him, and Bukele smiled and summed up his governing philosophy: “I’m sorry I run a government, but it’s a very small government.”

The Happy Whistler

I have visited many countries sliding into darker trajectories: more surveillance, more centralization, more control, more violence. But what is happening in El Salvador is the opposite: safety without oppression, order without suffocation, freedom with responsibility. After decades of violent gangs, Salvadorans feel liberated. You can see it on their faces: they are friendly, relaxed, and full of gratitude. On my last trip, I saw a 75-year-old man riding his bike through El Zonte at sunrise, whistling. “When do people whistle?” I asked myself. “Happy people whistle. People only whistle when they feel safe.” That simple moment became a silent metaphor for this place in my heart.

Yes, the country still has to deal with global institutions like the IMF. The recent decision to repeal bitcoin’s legal tender status is indeed regrettable, but after seeing the substance beneath the surface, it feels like one step back, four steps forward. Progress is not always smooth. But the direction is clear: toward monetary sovereignty, digital sovereignty, educational sovereignty, and civic sovereignty, with all forces pushing in the same direction.

This week allowed me to catch a glimpse of a nation in the midst of self-reinvention.

While most countries in the world struggle with economic, security, and fragile social structures under the influence of global agendas, El Salvador is changing its own reality and stepping onto a new timeline.

And meeting Bukele didn’t feel like meeting a president.

It felt more like meeting an architect determined to liberate his country and pave the way forward.