Share this article
Six of 10 Salvadorans Quit Using the Chivo Wallet After Getting the Bitcoin Incentive, Study Finds
“Most users who used Chivo after spending the $30 bonus do not engage with the app intensively,” the U.S. National Bureau of Economic Research reported.
Updated May 11, 2023, 4:21 p.m. Published Apr 27, 2022, 6:11 a.m.
Only four of 10 Salvadorans who downloaded the state-run bitcoin wallet Chivo said they still use it after obtaining the $30 bitcoin incentive dangled by President Nayib Bukele's government, according to a report published by the U.S. National Bureau of Economic Research.
“Most users who used Chivo after spending the $30 bonus do not engage with the app intensively,” said the study, based on face-to-face surveys that took place in February with adults in 1,800 households across El Salvador.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
“The median user reports no ATM withdrawals, and no payments sent or received in bitcoin in a given month,” the report said. It added that although “most citizens in El Salvador have a cell phone with internet, less than 60% of them downloaded Chivo Wallet.”
According to the report, “Chivo is not being widely used to receive remittances from abroad.” Its figures align with recent reports from the Salvadoran Central Bank, according to which 1.6% of remittances were received by digital wallets in February, the study said. “In the first quarter of 2022, we find almost no new adopters and the share of remittances in bitcoin is at its lowest point since Chivo Wallet’s launch,” it added.
In addition, 5% of Salvadorans paid taxes using bitcoin, while 20% of firms accept bitcoin and 11.4% said they had positives sales using the cryptocurrency, the report concluded.
Read More: El Salvador Postpones Bitcoin Bond: Report
More For You
What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
More For You
Hong Kong's OSL Group to Offer U.S.-Regulated Stablecoin with Anchorage Digital
The USDGO token will be issued under U.S. federal oversight and backed 1:1 by U.S. dollar assets.
What to know:
- Hong Kong-based digital assets platform OSL Group is launching a U.S. dollar stablecoin, issued by Anchorage Digital, a federally chartered crypto bank.
- USDGO is aimed for cross-border payments and on-chain settlements, backed one-to-one by U.S. dollar assets.
- The stablecoin market is projected to grow significantly, with regulatory clarity under the Genius Act boosting adoption in the U.S.
Top Stories
