El Salvador’s government may face challenges in making Bitcoin legal tender, as more than three-quarters of the country remains skeptical of the plan, according to a report by Reuters.

Fast facts

  • A survey of 1,233 people across El Salvador earlier this month found that 54% of people said Bitcoin adoption was “not at all correct.” Just 24% described it as “only a little correct,” and less than 20% of respondents approved of the cryptocurrency plan.
  • The poll also found that 46% of respondents knew “nothing” about Bitcoin, and nearly 65% said they would not be open to being paid in cryptocurrency. The poll result indicates that one of the first hurdles the country faces in its Bitcoin plan is using the crypto to pay salaries.
  • El Salvador last month became the first country in the world to make Bitcoin legal tender, following a push by its president, Nayib Bukele. Bukele claimed the move would make international remittances easier for the nearly 25% of El Salvador’s 6.5 million population that lives abroad. It was also hoped that the use of Bitcoin would bring the country’s large unbanked population into the financial sector.