Tesla’s Bitcoin holdings have once again become a hot topic in the cryptocurrency community. This comes after Arkham Intelligence, a cryptocurrency data analytics platform, added a feature to its dashboard that allows users to track Tesla’s Bitcoin wallet. As of now, Tesla’s wallet contains approximately 11,509 BTC, which is 1,789 more than what was reported in its last earnings report.
In February 2021, Tesla, led by Elon Musk, purchased $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin during the peak of the last bull run. Additionally, the company announced its plans to accept Bitcoin payments for its cars. However, this adoption was short-lived as Tesla sold about 10% of its holdings in March 2021. Furthermore, in the second quarter of 2022, the electric car maker sold approximately 75% of its Bitcoin reserves.
Here is a timeline of Tesla’s Bitcoin holdings and sales:
– February 2021: Purchased $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin
– March 2021: Sold 4,320 BTC
– 2022: Sold 29,160 BTC
– 2023: No change in the balance of 9,720 BTC
Elon Musk has had a complicated relationship with Bitcoin. Initially, he expressed optimism about BTC and announced plans for Tesla to store its own Bitcoin using on-chain wallets. However, he quickly changed his stance, citing environmental concerns related to Bitcoin mining and decided not to accept BTC for Tesla cars.
There has been speculation among users as to whether Tesla has started repurchasing Bitcoin or if the recent change in figures is due to an accounting error. Some suggest that the company might have begun buying BTC after the last earnings call and could include the newly purchased BTC in its next call. However, neither Tesla nor Musk have provided any comment on these speculations.
In addition to Tesla, Musk’s other company, SpaceX, also holds Bitcoin on its balance sheet. This decision came after Michael Saylor, the co-founder and executive chairman of MicroStrategy, convinced Musk to add Bitcoin to his company’s balance sheet. MicroStrategy currently holds 193,000 BTC, making it the largest institutional holder of Bitcoin in the world.