Chivo Wallet
“Can a government-issued crypto wallet serve as the primary financial infrastructure for a dollarized economy with low banking penetration?”
Founded2021
HQSan Salvador, El Salvador
Total raisedGovernment-funded (no disclosed private rounds)
IndustryFintech / Crypto
The story
Chivo Wallet was created in 2021 by the Government of El Salvador as the official wallet for the world's first Bitcoin legal tender experiment. Initially mandated for merchant acceptance and bootstrapped with $30 USD in BTC per registered user, the wallet attempted to bank the unbanked via crypto rails. After a 2024 IMF deal required El Salvador to scale back mandatory Bitcoin acceptance, the wallet transitioned to a more voluntary role. A major 2024 data breach eroded public trust, and the app has since operated with reduced prominence in national financial infrastructure.
Last 12 months
Product timeline
2021
Launched as El Salvador's official government-backed Bitcoin and US dollar wallet following passage of the Bitcoin Law (Ley Bitcoin), making BTC legal tender.· banking
2021
Deployed nationwide network of Chivo ATMs and 'Puntos Chivo' service kiosks across El Salvador for cash-in and cash-out in USD.· banking
2022
Expanded to Salvadoran diaspora in the United States with Chivo ATMs in US cities to facilitate cross-border remittances.· banking
2024
Data breach exposed personal information (name, DUI, photo, address) of over 5 million Salvadoran citizens linked to Chivo's KYC database.· pivot
2024
El Salvador revised its Bitcoin Law under IMF pressure, removing mandatory merchant acceptance; Chivo's role shifted to optional.· pivot
The stack
0 layers disclosed in Chivo Wallet’s embedded-finance stack
Accounting gap: none