This Week in Crypto: IMF Targets Bitcoin Moves in El Salvador and Pakistan, Bitmain Unveils Most Efficient Miner

Blockchain initiatives in El Salvador and Pakistan attracted the attention of the IMF. In China, the first battle among robots was held, among other events from the past week.Bitcoin remained in a consolidation zone. After reaching a high of $112,000 last week, the first cryptocurrency attempted another breakout. However, after testing $111,000 on May 27, the price began to decline.BTC price chart (embed)As a result of the accelerated fall, the price slipped below $104,000. The main drivers of the downward movement were negative news about trade negotiations between the US and its largest foreign economic partners — China and the EU.An additional factor was the outflow of funds from Bitcoin ETFs after nine days of uninterrupted net inflows. On Friday, May 30, investors withdrew about $616 million from these products.At the time of writing, the first cryptocurrency is trading near $104,000, having fallen in price by about 5% over the week. Several altcoins from the top 10 by capitalization experienced larger declines. Dogecoin lost 15%, Solana decreased by 13%, and XRP by 8%, while Ethereum fell by 2%.The cryptocurrency Fear and Greed Index dipped to 56 by the end of the week. The metric moved closer to the neutral zone but still signals positive investor sentiment.Image Source: alternative.meThe total capitalization of the crypto market fell to $3.3 trillion, with Bitcoin’s dominance at 63.2% and Ethereum’s at over 9%.The International Monetary Fund (IMF) declared that it will make every effort to limit the size of El Salvador’s Bitcoin reserve.The organization said it had reached staff-level agreements on expanded financing for the state. In 2024, the parties agreed to limit El Salvador’s acquisition of Bitcoin in exchange for a 40-month loan of $1.4 billion. With additional support from other international and regional entities, the package could total $3.5 billion.A preliminary step for approval was amending the Bitcoin law. The government eliminated the mandatory nature of accepting coins for private organizations and revoked its status as a legitimate means of payment.Despite the formal ban, El Salvador continued to systematically increase its Bitcoin position, bringing it to 6,190 BTC. The latest acquisition was recorded on May 28.El Salvador’s bitcoin balance. Source: bitcoin.gb.svThe IMF also expressed concern over Pakistan’s initiatives in cryptocurrencies and artificial intelligence.The country’s authorities announced the allocation of 2 GW of surplus electricity for Bitcoin mining and powering data centers to serve the AI sector. Bilal bin Saqib, the prime minister’s advisor on cryptocurrencies, announced the creation of a national reserve in Bitcoin.The plans drew a sharp reaction from the IMF, which sought urgent clarification on the legal backing for the announced steps and the distribution of electricity amid chronic shortages.Officials confirmed that they had not notified the organization of the decisions, although they were negotiating with it for financial support. They acknowledged that the initiatives could complicate agreements, which already face “thorny issues” along the way.Bitmain has unveiled the first Bitcoin miner with an energy efficiency of less than 10 J/TH. The flagship of the latest Antminer S23 Hydro series claims a figure of 9.5 J/TH.The hydro-cooled device produces a hash rate of 580 TH/s at a power consumption of 5.51 kW.Experts noted that the manufacturer is releasing the miner to the market in conditions of stagnant demand. The firm offers buyers flexible installment options with a 40% down payment and Bitcoin deposit options.Competitors from Bitdeer expect to approach the performance of Bitmain’s flagship with the launch of the SEALMINER A3 in the fourth quarter. Units based on the SEAL03 chip are expected to deliver 11 J/TH energy efficiency.Get Started on Kraken