El Salvador’s Bitcoin Bet Is Up Nearly $400M; Now It Faces US Sanctions

In a defiant public display, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele has posted the country’s growing Bitcoin portfolio on the social media platform X, shortly after a new U.S. Senate bill proposed potential sanctions against his administration for its handling of the digital asset.

The portfolio, valued at over $691 million, shows an 86.57% gain over the original investment and records zero realized profits to date, according to data from the tracking service DropsTab.

According to the dashboard Bukele displayed, El Salvador’s Bitcoin holdings have appreciated significantly over the past year. The country’s initial investment of $291.72 million has now grown to a total value of $691.60 million. This has produced an unrealized, or “paper,” profit of $399.88 million.

The dashboard clearly shows that no assets have been sold since the country began its accumulation. The largest single-day value increase in the portfolio occurred on July 9, when the price of Bitcoin surged to a new all-time high above $112,000 before stabilizing at just over $111,000.

The timing of Bukele’s post appears to be a direct response to the introduction of a new bill in the U.S. Senate that could lead to sanctions against his leadership. The legislation, titled the El Salvador Accountability Act of 2025 (S. 2058), was introduced by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Alex Padilla (D-CA). The proposed law mandates a detailed report on the Salvadoran government’s use of Bitcoin and possible connections to illicit activity.

If enacted, the proposed law would mandate a detailed report from the U.S. Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Treasury on the Salvadoran government’s use of Bitcoin. The investigation would look into whether Salvadoran officials have used cryptocurrency to engage in corruption, sanctions evasion, or other violations of U.S. law.

The report would also have to include specific information on the total amount El Salvador has spent on Bitcoin, the exchanges it used, its wallet addresses, and the names of the individuals managing the funds.