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Nayib Bukele Net Worth, Crypto and NFT Investments

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The net worth of Nayib Bukele is estimated to be around $2 million. The bulk of his wealth is generated through his salary as president and his stake in a family business. 

Before venturing into politics, he inherited a flourishing public relations firm from his father. He also established a business at the age of eighteen (18). However,  a significant portion of his fortune had been spent on political campaigns, especially after he was ousted from the then-ruling FMNL. 

Nayib Bukele

Bukele made history in 2021, two years after his emergence as president of El Salvador. As the 43rd president, he announced Bitcoin as a legal tender in the Central American nation. With this historic development, El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt cryptocurrency as its legal tender. He is not stopping there and has continued to strengthen crypto innovations in the country.

Meanwhile, there are reports that he owns an automobile retail company in El Salvador. According to reports, he also served as the director and president of a local company in his native city. Nayib Bukele made a little part of his net worth through these ventures. 

Nayib Bukele’s Net Worth

Year Net Worth
2023 $2 million

Early Life

Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez was born on 24 July 1981 in the capital city of El Salvador; San Salvador. His parents are Armando Bukele Kattán and Olga Ortez de Bukele. Bukele’s paternal grandparents are Palestinian Christian immigrants from Jerusalem and Bethlehem. They moved to El Salvador at the advent of the 20th century. His maternal grandmother, on the other hand, was a Catholic. He was born into a polygamous family and has three brothers and seven half-siblings.

His father, Armando Bukele Kattán is a successful Salvadoran businessman. The prosperity of his business encouraged Nayib Bukele to follow the same path at a very young age. Armando Bukele Kattán owned numerous companies across different industries. Some of his investments spread across industries like textile, commerce, pharmaceuticals, advertising, public relations, and media. He also established the first McDonald’s franchise in El Salvador. 

Later, Armando Bukele Kattán converted to Islam, becoming a reputable religious leader. As a learned Muslim faithful, he wrote books about his faith and physics. He reportedly built the first mosque in El Salvador. Before his death, he built four mosques in total, and also belonged to numerous Islamic organizations. His reputation provided Nayib Bukele with certain privileges in the country.

With his wealth, Bukele’s father ensured that his children attended the best schools in San Salvador. Bukele was quite popular while in school due to his father’s fame. He was popular to the extent that he emerged as the president of his high-school class. Later, he proceeded to study law at the Central American University, but dropped out shortly after. According to Nayib, he took the decision to establish a company and follow in the footsteps of his father. 

In 1999, Bukele founded his first company. During this period, he was also the manager of a downtown nightclub in the capital city of El Salvador. Later, he decided to take over his father’s public relations company. This decision gave him a pathway to pick an interest in politics. The public relations firm was managing the media affairs of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMNL) at that time. The FMNL is a guerilla forces political party that served as an opposition to the ruling party of Alianza Republicana Nacionalista popularly referred to as Arena. 

In the late 1990s, operatives of the customs service stopped Bukele while traveling with his family. He was questioned as regards the popular terrorist group, Al Qaeda which gained heavy recognition at that time. The operatives claimed Bukele’s name sounded suspicious. In his recent yearbook, Bukele captioned his photograph as “class terrorist” in reference to the issue at the airport.

Early Political Career

It is worth mentioning that Bukele started developing a strong interest in the politics of El Salvador around 1997. His father is a vocal supporter of the FMNL party. In 2009, the political party gained more relevance and acceptance owing to the corruption scandal that rocked its major rival; Arena.

Two years later, Bukele launched a political campaign to become the mayor of Nuevo Cuscatlán, a political stronghold outside San Salvador. However, his father opposed the decision. Then, Armando Bukele Kattán was quoted saying “Don’t get involved in politics.” He cited how politicians who lose are abandoned by their followers and vehemently warned Bukele that he could be “damaged by the gods.”

Despite the warnings, Bukele pursued his interest in politics and proceeded with his campaign to become the mayor of Nuevo Cuscatlán. He ran with an FMNL ticket but distanced himself from some of the party’s manifestos. 

Bukele campaigned with the mantra of being “a member of a new generation with new ideas.” He avoided making comments about the party’s advocacy for a revolution. Likewise, through his campaigns, Bukele ditched the party’s traditional red and white color. Rather, he adopted thematic campaign colors that featured his name in white on a backdrop of light blue.

Eventually, Bukele was elected the mayor of Nuevo Cuscatlán in a keenly contested election. On March 11, 2012, he was announced the winner of the election after recording a total of 50.68% votes. 

He assumed office on May 1, 2012. His first endeavor in office was erecting a large stone sign with a white “N” imprinted in a circle at the entrance to Nuevo Cuscatlán. As the elected mayor of Nuevo, Bukele focused on educational reforms so as to reduce crime among youths. Driven by this commitment, he initiated a scholarship program that provided financial support for youths with a GPA of 3.5 and above. This scheme also allowed students to study at any university of their choice in El Salvador. 

Remarkably, he funded it with his salary as the mayor. Also, ALBA Petróleos, an association owned by the Venezuelan oil company PDVSA, provided financial support for the scholarship and most of Bukele’s projects as the mayor of Nuevo Cuscatlán. He also built a city library to cultivate a reading culture among youths. 

Likewise, his administration provided a monthly food basket to cover the basic nutritional needs of adults above 55 years old in the city. Bukele also extended his reforms to the security and health sectors. He built a twenty-four (24) hours clinic and a city center. On 21 January 2015, he commissioned a new boulevard that connected Nuevo Cuscatlán with Huizúcar and Antiguo Cuscatlán. 

These landmark achievements helped him build a good reputation in the city. His performance as the mayor of Nuevo Cuscatlán boosted his morale to become the mayor of the largest city in El Salvador; San Salvador. Then, leaders of FMNL urged him to contest for San Salvador mayor. They believed his emergence as the major of San Salvador would boost his chances of becoming El Salvador’s president. More so, the party hoped that the victory of Bukele would earn it two more seats in Congress. 

After declaring his intention to run for mayor of San Salvador, Bukele excluded FMNL from his campaigns. Rather, he turned to some of his families and close allies, like Karim and Ernesto Castro for support. With the support of Karim, Bukele was able to execute a well-coordinated campaign. The cost of sustaining the campaigns almost drained the net worth of Nayib Bukele. He was undeterred. 

The intensity of his campaign made him enjoy significant attention on Twitter. His followers on the social media app soared aggressively. Then, he even had more followers than the president of El Salvador at that time. 

In 2015, he contested and won the municipal elections with 50.37% votes. On May 1, 2015, Bukele took the oath of office to end Arena’s six years of control over the capital city. As the mayor of San Salvador, he made significant reforms to the capital city. First, he redressed the names of two streets in the city to honor widely celebrated El Savadorians. Also, he commenced the resuscitation of San Salvador by relocating street traders to the Cuscatlán Market he built. His government also built the city’s first municipal library.

As the mayor of San Salvador, Bukele focused on establishing a cordial relationship with neighboring countries. In February 2017, he visited Taipei, the capital city of Taiwan, where he met the President of the country; Tsai Ing-wen. The purpose of the meeting was to establish a cordial relationship between the two nations. In February 2018, he attended the 32nd International Mayors Conference in Jerusalem. Before he left office, Bukele spent about $5.7 million on road expansion, upgrading buildings, and restructuring electric and telecommunication lines. 

Emergence as El Salvador’s President

Occasioned by his brilliant performances as the mayor of Nuevo Cuscatlán and San Salvador, Bukele was tipped to contest for the presidency. Despite his growing popularity, he was ousted from the ruling FMNL due to some anti-party antics. After leaving the political party, he attempted to create his political party; Neuvas Idea. However, the attempt was greeted by a lawsuit from both FMNL and Arena. The controversy forced him to join the Grand Alliance for National Unity (GANA. He contested with the ticket of this party in the 2019 presidential elections. 

On February 3, 2019, Bukele emerged as the winner of the elections, winning 53% of the total votes. His victory earmarked a new era in the El Salvadorian political landscape. He became the first candidate to win the presidency from a third-force party, relegating two foremost political parties in the Central American country. 

Shortly after he assumed office, Bukele began to introduce some of the policies he executed as mayor of San Salvador. He focused on enhancing the security of El Salvador by instigating a clampdown against gangs in the country. Also, in his early effort as the president of El Salvador, Bukele attempted to borrow a $109 million loan from the United States to increase funding for the territorial control plan. However, this move was countered by the two major parties. 

Later, Bukele opted to forcefully ensure the approval of the loan. He ordered soldiers to occupy the premises of the legislative assembly to force lawmakers to approve it. Eventually, he had his way and the loan was approved. The issue generated widespread criticism, with many labeling him as a dictator. His use of force also surfaced in 2020 when he declared a lockdown in the country during the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, he ordered the arrest of violators and stern enforcement of his lockdown laws. 

In early 2021, the Bukele administration was investigated for corruption by the office of the El Salvador attorney general. Additionally, Transparency International cited El Salvador as an example of “an explosion of irregularities and corruption.” Ultimately, the investigation into the corruption allegations failed to progress after the El Salvador attorney general was removed.

Meanwhile, President Bukele intensified his efforts on gang crackdown in 2022. Then, the gang ambushed and killed three policeme. Bukele responded swiftly by recruiting more men to various El Salvador enforcement agencies. He also constructed a facility that could house 40,000 inmates. Eventually, the security agencies were able to nab the culprits.

Later, Amnesty International revealed that the Bukele administration committed various human rights violations. The agency claimed the president incarcerated about 2% of the country’s population. According to Amnesty International, the violation led to the death of 18 citizens in detention.

On September 15, 2022, President Bukele announced his intention to seek re-election in 2024. His declaration was greeted with criticisms, particularly from legal practitioners in the country who claimed he violated at least four articles of El Salvador’s constitution. Despite the widespread criticism, there are strong indications that Bukele would win his reelection bid due to the outcome of numerous polls.

On June 1, 2023, he proposed the reduction of municipalities in El Salvador from 262 to 44. Also, he asked that the number of seats in the Legislative Assembly be reduced from 84 to 60. A week later, the proposal to reduce the seats in the Legislative Assembly was adopted. 

Controversy/Criticism

Before his emergence as the president of El Salvador, Bukele was a prominent critic of China. He accused the Chinese government of interfering in Latin American politics. However, in December 2019, the president signed an infrastructural deal with China. Also, that month, Bukele traveled to China to meet the President of the country, Xi Jinping.  

The pro-Bitcoin president’s administration is characterized by various controversies. In September 2020, popular news website, El Faro accused Bukele of negotiating a secret deal with Mara Salvatrucha. It is worth noting that Mara Salvatrucha is the largest crime gang in El Salvador. According to the report, the president promised to grant more relaxed prison conditions to members of the gang and in return, asked them to reduce their violent activities and killings in the country.Also, it was alleged that Bukele asked the gang to support his 2024 re-election bid.

However, Bukele has debunked the allegations. He shared photos of how members of the gang were kept in prison under tough security. Likewise, his government ordered an investigation into the financial activities of El Faro, indicting the publishing house of money laundering.

Despite debunking the rumored deal with the gang, it continued to dominate the airspace. The United States Department of the Treasury, in its report, insisted that the president was negotiating a deal with gangs like Mara Salvatrucha. The Department banked on this report to sanction some top officials of Bukele’s cabinet. Again, the president refuted the claims insisting that the country only demanded total submission from the gang.

Once more, Bukele became the subject of tense scrutiny as a result of his adoption of Bitcoin as a legal tender in El Salvador. His obsession with Bitcoin didn’t stop at adoption alone, he committed a significant portion of El Salvador’s treasury to acquire BTC. 

The President’s focus on BTC was opposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The international body explained that the volatility of BTC could spell doom on the country’s economy. Furthermore, the IMF predicted that the country’s debt could rise significantly as a result of the move. 

More so, some residents of the country greeted the news with despair. They emphasized the poverty and unemployment rate of El Salvador, stating that the president could have committed the funds to provide basic amenities. Their fears and concerns were confirmed when the crypto bear of 2022 wiped out a noticeable portion of Bukele’s investment in Bitcoin. 

Meanwhile, around late October 2021, an audio recording of two deputies of the legislative assembly, planning with a critic of Bukele’s administration surfaced. The recording allegedly involved officials of the U.S. embassy in El Salvador negotiating a deal to oppose Bukele’s political proposals in the legislature. After the recording hit the media space, the President and his political party accused the deputies of conspiring against the presidency. However, the U.S. embassy denied its involvement in the plot. 

Meanwhile, the pro-bitcoin president is viewed by some international and local observers as an authoritarian. Around November 2021, he introduced the “foreign agent laws” to limit foreign interference in the political affairs of the Central American country. In a statement, the minister of interior, Juan Carlos Bidegain explained that the law was designed to ensure the security, sovereignty, and political stability of El Salvador. 

The President himself likened the bill to the United States Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). However, critics argued that the law was against the freedom of the Press in El Salvador. Their argument turned out to be correct as he eventually leveraged the law to block about 91 Twitter accounts owned by journalists, lawyers, and activists. 

In the same period, the Supreme Court overturned a 2014 ruling that required presidents to wait ten years before re-contesting for a post. The ruling means Bukele will be eligible to seek re-election in the 2024 presidential election. The issue generated widespread opposition from the two major parties of El Salvador, citizens, and local and international observers. 

Is Nayib Bukele Pro Crypto?

Nayib Bukele, has over the years, proven himself as an unapologetic advocate of cryptocurrency. He finds potential in crypto, particularly his favorite asset, Bitcoin. His passion for Bitcoin is so vast to the extent that he masterminded the adoption of the asset as a legal tender in El Salvador.

Bukele made this happen despite strong opposition to cryptocurrencies in neighboring countries, particularly the United States. His first public statement as regards the adoption of Bitcoin in the Central American nation was made at the 2021 Miami conference. Then, he revealed for the first time that El Salvadorian lawmakers were considering a bill to make Bitcoin a legal tender in the country. 

Later in September, President Bukele signed the bill into law, thereby positioning El Salvador as the first country in the world to make such a move. During the official unveiling, he extolled the virtues of crypto. First, he described it “as a path to financial freedom.” His belief is that the adoption of Bitcoin would bring at least 70% of all the residents in the country with no bank accounts into the formal economy. Also, the President hyped cryptocurrency as the best method to get remittances from abroad.

Likewise, Bukele said Bitcoin as the biggest crypto asset has the potential to “free the indebted nation from the hold of the traditional global financial system” and also addresses the issues caused by credit scores and bank wires inefficiencies. In a bid to keep the ball rolling, his government facilitated the development of a virtual wallet, Chivo.

Then, the wallet paid $30 worth of Bitcoins to every El Salvador resident who downloaded and used it. Nevertheless, the app recorded poor patronage due to its pricing discrepancies. According to credible reports, some of those who registered stopped using it after collecting their registration bonus. 

Meanwhile, in spite of all the criticisms that greeted the adoption of Bitcoin in the country, Bukele was undeterred. His government spent over $85 million to acquire Bitcoins between September 2021 to January 2022. This is despite the fact that the crypto endured about a 45% drop in its price within these periods. The dip started in November, and as of then, the government held at least 1,220 BTCs.

Later in January 2022, sources revealed that the holdings increased to 1,801. This simply means the Bukele administration increased its exposure to the asset during the dip. Nevertheless, the development led to a loss of about $20 million in the country’s national reserves. 

Even with this setback, Bukele never considered backing down from the Bitcoin policy. He despises fiat and believes its days are gone for good. Bukele’s stance is always that Bitcoin is the “real revolution” that the world needs. He was truly committed to making El Salvador a crypto hub against all odds. This commitment propelled him to initiate and promote the world’s first “Bitcoin City” project in the country.

Although the idea of the project was first unveiled at the 2021 Latin American Bitcoin and Blockchain Conference, Bukele did not share its architectural drawings and designs until 2022. According to him, the project is funded with the government’s $1 billion Bitcoin bond. It is reportedly located at the heart of the Conchagua volcano. 

However, there are questions as to whether the project exists in reality or only on paper. Recently, a Twitter user cited a purported document from the country’s Ministry of Public Works to argue that it never existed or had been canceled. In the said document, the ministry said it was not aware of the project. 

“In this regard, the Technical Sub-Directorate of this Directorate informs that among the projects carried out by this Directorate there is neither the Bitcoin City project nor is there knowledge of it.”

Nevertheless, in early 2022, the country repaid its $800 million bond issue with interest. Then, Bukele trolled those who claimed the country would default on its debt due to exposure to Bitcoin. 

“In the past year, almost every legacy international news outlet said that because of our ‘bitcoin bet,’ El Salvador was going to default on its debt by January 2023 (since we had an 800 million dollar bond maturing today),” he said.

As part of his administration’s commitment to turn El Salvador into a crypto hub, it hosted the 2022 Bitcoin conference. The conference featured representatives from at least 44 countries, including 12 financial agencies and 32 central banks. Some of the countries with representatives at the conference include Madagascar, Haiti, Pakistan, Paraguay, Maldives, Bangladesh, and many more. The delegates shared insights into the various topics relating to Bitcoin and the crypto market at large. The same month, Bukele confirmed that his government bought another 500 BTCs.

Unfortunately, he could not participate in the Bitcoin Miami conference that unfolded the same year. Then, the Bitcoin optimist cited unforeseen circumstances which necessitated him to be at home during that conference. Although he did not reveal the circumstances, sources claimed the security crisis in El Salvador at that time informed his decision to pull out from the conference. 

Again, his government added another 80 BTCs to its holdings despite the huge dip caused by the Terra-Luna implosion. This development ignited controversies for Bukele. Likewise, the U.S. Senate, prior to that time, had already evaluated a bill to lessen the risks posed by El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin on the former’s economy. The bill, titled “Accountability for Cryptocurrency in El Salvador (ACES) Act” was introduced by Senator James Risch (R-Idaho), Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), and Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.).

Shortly after the news of the bill dominated the airspace, Bukele was quick to react. In his tweet, he said; “Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that the U.S. government would be afraid of what we are doing here.”

Certainly, many were concerned about El Salvador’s Bitcoin exposure, particularly amid the 2022 crypto winter. Recall that the Terra-Luna and FTX implosions dipped Bitcoin to its lowest low. Prominent agencies, including the IMF, believed the crisis could inflict disaster on the country’s economy. Earlier, BBC reported that the BTCs purchased by the government had already lost 50% of their value. But, Finance Minister, Alejandro Zelaya kept insisting that the country lost nothing to the crash because it never sold any of its Bitcoin holdings.

In 2023, El Salvador under the leadership of Bukele took a bolder step to regulate the issuance of other digital assets, like Ether by public and private entities. The 47-article law secured 62 votes out of 84 seats in the country’s legislative arm. 

The major purpose of this law, as revealed, is to “establish the legal framework that grants legal certainty to transfer operations to any title of digital assets used in public issuance offers.”

Also, it ensures the development of the National Commission for Digital Assets and the Bitcoin Funds Administration Agency. These agencies will be responsible for protecting and investing the investments from public offerings of virtual assets by the government. 

Likewise, the law excludes digital currencies offered by central banks of any country as well as Bitcoin, being a legal tender in El Salvador. 

In March, the government unveiled Saifedean Ammous as the new economic adviser to the country’s National Bitcoin Office (ONBTC). Ammous is popular as the author of a crypto book, titled “The Bitcoin Standard.” According to the announcement, the author is expected to work as a remote advisor so as to add “another voice and opinion to the advice the president receives as Bitcoin Country continues to grow rapidly.”

Meanwhile, the country’s soft stance on cryptocurrency has continued to attract numerous firms to its territory. Around August 2023, the leading crypto exchange in the world, Binance announced its full presence in the country. According to the announcement, the exchange received the Bitcoin Services Provider license (BSP) and non-provisional Digital Assets Services Provider license (DASP) in the country. This development made Binance the first fully licensed crypto exchange in the country.

Crypto and NFT Holdings of Nayib Bukele

Being a Bitcoin bull, it is not surprising that President Nayib Bukele has a personal crypto portfolio. Although he is yet to publicly confirm this, there’s no doubt that he is a smart Bitcoin investor. He shares the same ideology with other illustrious Bitcoin investors who usually buy the dip. As a matter of fact, he regretted not buying enough during the 2021-2022 market downturn.

However, there are no indications that he has exposure to other crypto assets and NFTs. 

Crypto and NFT Projects Featuring Nayib Bukele

Nayib Bukele has been featured in several NFT collections on Mintable and OpenSea. The collection on Mintable is enveloped with a graphical image of Bukele holding the Bitcoin logo. Likewise, the one on OpenSea features the President in a black suit and on a Bitcoin background. This collection was designed to celebrate his efforts towards making El Salvador a hub for Bitcoin and other crypto assets. 

Driven by the historical adoption of Bitcoin in El Salvador, Bukele has also been featured on Wall Street Memes. His insistence on buying the dip for his country was one of the reasons he commanded the attention of this project. Don’t forget that Wall Street Memes is a household name in the world of social media memes. Over the past few years, its team has maintained impressive social media engagement through animated memes. The belief is that these memes can help sustain a sense of belonging in the industry. 

Nayib Bukele on Wall Street Memes

Meanwhile, apart from Bukele, other prominent crypto bulls like Changpeng Zhao, Jim Cramer, Elon Musk, and many more have also been featured on Wall Street Memes. The team behind the project is so vast in portraying trends in the crypto world with memes. Therefore, it is not surprising that its daily Instagram and Twitter memes have continued to win the hearts of millions of supporters. Recently, some of its memes were noticed and acknowledged by Elon Musk, a development that many consider a huge accomplishment. 

Remarkably, Musk’s support for Wall Street Memes has continued to impact its ongoing $WSM presale. Investors are excited and optimistic that the billionaire’s interest in the project has positioned it for long-term success. Recall that he is one of the biggest supporters of a rival meme coin, Doge. His strong support for crypto helped push it to the mainstream. Doge is a leader in the meme coin world today, courtesy of Elon Musk and its vibrant community. 

Wall Street Memes shares almost the same attributes as Doge. It has a vibrant social media army and has already earned the interest of Musk. This explains why it has already secured over $20 million in investments from the ongoing presale. Although the token sale is still ongoing, analysts believe it is one of the biggest crypto presales owing to the wave of excitement greeting it. 

$WSM has the backing of reputable crypto influencers in the industry. In recent months, some of them, including Satoshi Stacker, and Michael Wrubel endorsed it on their YouTube videos. These two guys alone command over 600,000 subscribers and followers. Satoshi Stacker, in a short video, convinced his audience why he thinks the $WSM will replicate the success of other meme coins like Pepe and Doge. 

Recall that Pepe recently recorded a huge spike in its value around early 2023, courtesy of the Bitcoin price rally. With this development, the meme coin turned many of its early investors into millionaires. It is believed that $WSM has the same potential. 

Visit wallstmemes.com to learn more.

Nayib Bukele’s Net Worth – The Verdict

Nayib Bukele made the bulk of his net worth through his stake in his family business. His salary as the president of El Salvador also contributed to his seven-figure net worth. Apart from being the president of the Central American nation, he is popular across the globe as a strong Bitcoin advocate. In recent years, he leveraged his office to legalize crypto in El Salvador and made history as the first president to approve the adoption of Bitcoin as a legal tender. Despite the widespread controversy that greeted his decision, Bukele is unbothered and has remained undistracted in his bid to make the country a crypto hub. 

Meanwhile, his first term tenure as president is expected to end in 2024. But, he is certainly on course to seek reelection to office. Recall that the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court had already overturned the 2014 ruling that mandated presidents to wait ten years before being eligible to re-contest. It is expected that he will continue his Bitcoin agenda if re-elected into office. 

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FAQs

When did El Salvador adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender?

El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as a legal tender in 2021.

What's the 2023 net worth of Nayib Bukele?

The 2023 net worth of Nayib Bukele is estimated to be around $2 million.

How did Nayib Bukele build his net worth?

According to our findings, Nayib Bukele secured a huge portion of his seven-figure net worth through his stake in family business and salary as president of the country.