The Republic of El Salvador is set to create a $150 million Bitcoin trust to better enable the conversion of the cryptocurrency to U.S. Dollars (UUP  ). The new legislation comes as the country is set to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender next week, a move that has set off a wave of protests throughout the country.

El Salvador's legislators approved the trust on Monday, a move meant to augment the forthcoming acceptance of Bitcoin for conventional purchases. According to the documentation produced by legislators, "The purpose of this [trust] is to financially support the alternatives that the state provides, without prejudice to private initiatives, that allow the user to carry out the automatic and instantaneous convertibility of bitcoin to the United States dollar."

El Salvador's adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender, which will become official on September 7, will make it the first state to adopt any cryptocurrency in any official capacity. The process began a few months prior when President Nayib Bukele sent a proposal to the country's congress and has proceeded rapidly through El Salvador's legislative system since.

Despite a great deal of enthusiasm from lawmakers, the embrace of Bitcoin hasn't come without criticisms and setbacks, such as the International Monetary Fund's denial of a request for technical assistance. The adoption has also faced protests as of late, with Salvadorans taking to the streets of major cities such as San Salvador last week. The protestors, many of whom are pensioners whose payouts will now be in Bitcoin, have cited the cryptocurrency's volatility and rapid price fluctuations as their chief concerns.

"The law was adopted extremely quickly, without a technical study or a public debate," Salvadoran economist Ricardo Castañeda told the Guardian. "I don't think the president has fully understood the implications of the law, its potential to cause serious macroeconomic problems and convert the country into a haven for money laundering."