Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has stated that when purchasing with the government-backed Bitcoin wallet, Chivo, domestic customers would save $0.20 per gallon on gasoline. The president announced the rebate through Twitter on Thursday, calling it “good news for the wallets of Salvadorans.”
As per a rough translation, Bukele said, “The state firm Chivo bargained with the biggest gas station businesses in our nation, so that from tomorrow, their stations would sell each gallon of gasoline $0.20 cheaper, with Chivo wallet.” Bukele highlighted that there is no cap on the discount and that the refund is available to any local individual or business.
He went on to say that the reduction would wipe out “multiple rises in international gasoline prices” and “reduce transportation prices in supply chains.” Some Salvadorans, nevertheless, are skeptical that the rebate would eventually serve the public interest, with Twitter user Adan 3840 replying, “Those 20 cents will start coming from everyone, right?”
The petrol station does not suffer a loss; the reimbursement is covered with the taxes of even those who walk. Some were skeptical of the government’s choice to limit the discount to those who settle with Chivo, with one Twitter account asking why the cabinet did not act sooner to reduce gasoline costs.
2. La empresa estatal Chivo negoció con las empresas gasolineras más grandes de nuestro país, para que a partir de mañana, sus estaciones vendan cada galón de combustible $0.20 más barato, con @chivowallet.
Esto borra varios aumentos del precio internacional de los combustibles. pic.twitter.com/V3qG168isV
— Nayib Bukele 🇸🇻 (@nayibbukele) September 30, 2021
Along with the announcement, Bukele disclosed that he has approved a budget to “stabilize” the local price of liquefied gas. While the international market was expecting a $1.17 increase in the cost of 25-pound cylinders of liquified gas, the president said that Salvadorans would see a “small decrease” in cost. He went on to say that the administration would endure the rise for a year only, and that any decreases in worldwide gas prices will be given to the customer during that time.
🤔🤔 Esos 20 centavos, saldrán de todos nosotros cierto? La Gasolinera no pierde, ahí va el reintegro después pagado con impuestos de incluso los que andamos a pie
— Swap (@Adan_3840) September 30, 2021
Es grand la desesperación verdad pte.? Con ese "negocio" hecho x su empresa chivo, con las gasolineras, queda demostrado q está en manos del estado regular los precios d los combustibles. ¿Porq no lo hizo antes d otra manera? Ahora quiere meter como sea el bitcóin.
— Arthur (@Arthur10340394) September 30, 2021
On September 7, El Salvador became the first nation to formally endorse Bitcoin as legal currency.In the same month, Bukele stated that within three weeks after its debut, one-third of Salvadorans were already using Chivo. Onlookers, nevertheless, have voiced doubt over Bukele’s claims of increasing crypto usage, with prominent crypto opponent and author David Gerard claiming that Salvadoran authorities are “feeding Bukele statistics that suit him” but “break apart with the bit of scrutiny.”
In his column “Invasion of the 50 Foot Blockchain,” Gerard examined Chivo use numbers provided by Bukele and concluded that the state wallet “would be performing more trades a day than Visa does globally” if the president’s data was correct.
