Donald Trump’s advisor Bo Hines meets Nayib Bukele as US eyes El Salvador’s Bitcoin strategy

Bo Hines, who leads President Donald Trump’s advisory council on digital assets, recently met with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele to discuss potential partnerships in the crypto space.

In a post shared on June 5, Hines revealed that the meeting centered around digital asset development and a shared ambition to reshape global finance. He also praised Bukele for spearheading what he described as transformative change in El Salvador.

The Central American country’s official Bitcoin Office confirmed the engagement, noting that both leaders explored opportunities for collaboration between the United States and El Salvador in the digital asset space.

The office wrote:

“[President Bukele and Bo Hines] discussed collaboration between the United States and El Salvador on bitcoin and digital assets.”

Meanwhile, Hines’ visit follows President Bukele’s recent White House trip, during which he met with President Trump to discuss regional security and prison agreements.

Although Bitcoin was not discussed in that meeting, Hines’s presence in El Salvador places the spotlight back on crypto policy.

What does this mean?

This diplomatic engagement may be tied to Trump’s broader crypto agenda.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration unveiled plans to create a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR). This reserve would consist of Bitcoin acquired through budget-neutral strategies and digital assets recovered from criminal seizures.

Although the US has not made official Bitcoin purchases, Hines’ trip could indicate that the US is exploring how to model its reserve after El Salvador’s approach. Though the current US mandate is that it will only acquire Bitcoin through ‘budget-neutral’ methodologies. Bukele’s government was the first to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender and currently holds more than 6,198 BTC.

At the same time, El Salvador continues to promote crypto literacy through national education programs covering Bitcoin, AI, and emerging technologies. Speaking on these programs, Stacy Herbert, the Director of El Salvador Bitcoin Office, said:

“El Salvador is preparing our young people to become global tech leaders by not just teaching them the required technical skills but by also giving them an ethical and philosophical foundation to build the world they want to see.”

Notably, the Trump administration has also adopted a pro-crypto approach by introducing legislation and rules that could further help the emerging industry thrive.

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