RIYADH: Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency internationally, traded lower on Tuesday, down 4.4 percent to $31,748 as of 11:53 a.m. Riyadh time.
Ether, the second most traded cryptocurrency, was priced at $2,388, down 2.58 percent, according to data from CoinDesk.
El Salvador buys more coins
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele announced on Twitter that his country has bought another 500 Bitcoins.
Since El Salvador has adopted cryptocurrency as legal tender, the Salvadoran government has purchased 2,301 Bitcoins.
“El Salvador just bought the dip! 500 coins at an average USD price of $30,744,” Bukele wrote on Twitter.
Bukele’s tweet came as the crypto market lost billions, and the price of Bitcoin dropped more than 50 percent from its all-time high, according to Bitcoin.com.
El Salvador became the first country to legally tender for Bitcoin alongside the US dollar in September last year.
The total Bitcoin holdings in El Salvador have lost more than $30 million in value, according to one estimate.
However, Bukele remains bullish on Bitcoin and expects it to reach $100,000 this year.
El Salvador also plans to issue Bitcoin bonds but the launch date has not been set.
El Salvador Treasury Minister Alejandro Zelaya explained that the market conditions and the Russia-Ukraine war have affected the bond issuance.
“We are waiting for the right moment and the president says when … It depends on how the market is,” Zelaya said
