Latam Insights: IMF Denies El Salvador's Bitcoin Purchase Claims; US-Brazil Conflict Set to Escalate Welcome to Latam Insights, a compilation of the most relevant crypto news from Latin America over the past week. In this week’s edition, the IMF states that El Salvador’s bitcoin purchases are merely consolidation operations, Brazil and the U.S. are on the verge of escalating a trade conflict, and the DEA has seized $10 million in crypto linked to the Sinaloa cartel. IMF Bombshell Footnote Solves El Salvador’s Bitcoin Accumulation Mystery The most recent report on the compliance performance of El Salvador, which examines compliance to maintain a $1.4 billion credit facility with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has finally revealed the mystery regarding the Salvadoran government’s continued accumulation of bitcoin. The report, which calls into attention the effects of the liquidity policies of Chivo Wallet, El Salvador’s official bitcoin wallet, over the bitcoin non-accumulation goals, discloses that the government has not been purchasing more bitcoin for some time. In a footnote referring to the mitigation of bitcoin-linked risks that declares the authorities “continue to comply with commitments not to voluntarily accumulate bitcoin, nor issue bitcoin-indexed/denominated debt or tokenized instruments that could create government liabilities,” the IMF states: Increases in bitcoin holdings in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Fund reflect the consolidation of bitcoin across various government-owned wallets. Read more. Brazil-US Trade Conflict May Escalate, Spurring Mutual Retaliation The conflict between the U.S. and Brazil over trade tariffs and the judicial treatment of former President Jair Bolsonaro risks escalating into a full impasse, as both parties are reportedly exploring further retaliatory measures. The bilateral relationship has deteriorated since President Trump imposed a 50% tariff on all Brazilian imports effective August 1. He cited concerns about a witch hunt against Bolsonaro and the censorship faced by U.S.-based social media companies operating in Brazil. The U.S. government has already taken action in this regard, with Secretary Marco Rubio revoking the visas of Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes and other judges involved in Bolsonaro’s trial. Read more. DEA Seizes $10 Million in Cryptocurrency Linked to the Sinaloa Cartel As criminals adapt and evolve to incorporate new financial tools, such as cryptocurrency, into their illicit activities, federal agencies have also adapted to combat these emerging methods. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the main federal agency involved in the fight against drugs in the U.S., recently announced that it hit the Sinaloa Cartel with a cryptocurrency seizure of $10 million derived from their drug trafficking activities. DEA Acting Administrator Robert Murphy highlighted the relevance of these activities as part of the Operation Take Back America, which has already seized millions of fentanyl pills and thousands of pounds of fentanyl powder, cocaine, and methamphetamines. Referring directly to the action involving the Sinaloa cartel, Murphy declared that the seizure was completed in Miami in collaboration with FBI operatives who used new financial tracking technologies to find these cryptocurrency assets.
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Latam Insights: IMF Denies El Salvador's Bitcoin Purchase Claims; US-Brazil Conflict Set to Escalate

Welcome to Latam Insights, a compilation of the most relevant crypto news from Latin America over the past week. In this week’s edition, the IMF states that El Salvador’s bitcoin purchases are merely consolidation operations, Brazil and the U.S. are on the verge of escalating a trade conflict, and the DEA has seized $10 million in crypto linked to the Sinaloa cartel.

IMF Bombshell Footnote Solves El Salvador’s Bitcoin Accumulation Mystery

The most recent report on the compliance performance of El Salvador, which examines compliance to maintain a $1.4 billion credit facility with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has finally revealed the mystery regarding the Salvadoran government’s continued accumulation of bitcoin.

The report, which calls into attention the effects of the liquidity policies of Chivo Wallet, El Salvador’s official bitcoin wallet, over the bitcoin non-accumulation goals, discloses that the government has not been purchasing more bitcoin for some time.

In a footnote referring to the mitigation of bitcoin-linked risks that declares the authorities “continue to comply with commitments not to voluntarily accumulate bitcoin, nor issue bitcoin-indexed/denominated debt or tokenized instruments that could create government liabilities,” the IMF states:

Increases in bitcoin holdings in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Fund reflect the consolidation of bitcoin across various government-owned wallets.

Read more.

Brazil-US Trade Conflict May Escalate, Spurring Mutual Retaliation

The conflict between the U.S. and Brazil over trade tariffs and the judicial treatment of former President Jair Bolsonaro risks escalating into a full impasse, as both parties are reportedly exploring further retaliatory measures.

The bilateral relationship has deteriorated since President Trump imposed a 50% tariff on all Brazilian imports effective August 1. He cited concerns about a witch hunt against Bolsonaro and the censorship faced by U.S.-based social media companies operating in Brazil.

The U.S. government has already taken action in this regard, with Secretary Marco Rubio revoking the visas of Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes and other judges involved in Bolsonaro’s trial.

Read more.

DEA Seizes $10 Million in Cryptocurrency Linked to the Sinaloa Cartel

As criminals adapt and evolve to incorporate new financial tools, such as cryptocurrency, into their illicit activities, federal agencies have also adapted to combat these emerging methods. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the main federal agency involved in the fight against drugs in the U.S., recently announced that it hit the Sinaloa Cartel with a cryptocurrency seizure of $10 million derived from their drug trafficking activities.

DEA Acting Administrator Robert Murphy highlighted the relevance of these activities as part of the Operation Take Back America, which has already seized millions of fentanyl pills and thousands of pounds of fentanyl powder, cocaine, and methamphetamines.

Referring directly to the action involving the Sinaloa cartel, Murphy declared that the seizure was completed in Miami in collaboration with FBI operatives who used new financial tracking technologies to find these cryptocurrency assets.