Tesla’s relationship with Bitcoin has been a rollercoaster ride, and recent developments have the crypto community buzzing again.
A Change in Tesla’s Bitcoin Holdings?
Cryptocurrency data platform Arkham Intelligence added Tesla’s Bitcoin wallet to its tracking dashboard, revealing a surprise. Tesla’s wallet currently holds roughly 11,509 BTC, a significant increase from the 9,720 BTC reported during their last earnings call. This has sparked speculation:
- Repurchase or Error? Some users suspect Tesla might be buying Bitcoin again, with a potential announcement during their next earnings call. Others believe it could be a simple accounting error.
Tesla’s Bitcoin History: A Bull Run, a Chill Out, and a Sell-Off
Let’s rewind:
- February 2021: Tesla, under Elon Musk’s leadership, purchased a whopping $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin near the peak of the previous bull run. They even announced accepting Bitcoin payments for Tesla vehicles.
- March 2021 & Q2 2022: Tesla’s Bitcoin love affair cooled quickly. They sold roughly 10% of their holdings in March 2021, followed by a massive 75% sell-off in the second quarter of 2022.
Musk’s Bitcoin: Hot and Cold
Elon Musk’s stance on Bitcoin has been, well, volatile:
- 2021 – The Optimist: Musk initially expressed enthusiasm for Bitcoin, even planning for Tesla to hold Bitcoin in its own digital wallets.
- Shifting Gears: Just weeks later, those plans for Bitcoin payments were scrapped due to alleged environmental concerns surrounding Bitcoin mining.
Related: Jeff Bezos Dumps Amazon Stock to HODL Bitcoin!?!?
What Now?
The crypto community awaits clarification. Here are some possibilities:
- New Purchases?: Did Tesla quietly start buying Bitcoin again after their last earnings call?
- Accounting Hiccup?: Is the increase simply a bookkeeping error?
Tesla and Musk Remain Silent
So far, neither Tesla nor Elon Musk have commented on the potential Bitcoin repurchases.
SpaceX in the Bitcoin Mix
Interestingly, another Musk-owned company, SpaceX, also holds Bitcoin on its balance sheet. This influence likely came from Michael Saylor, co-founder of MicroStrategy, who famously convinced Musk to add Bitcoin to SpaceX’s holdings. MicroStrategy, with its massive 193,000 BTC, is currently the world’s largest institutional holder of Bitcoin.
Related: MicroStrategy Acquires $147M More Bitcoin, Totals 158K BTC!
Saylor’s Bold Prediction
During a recent Bitcoin conference, Saylor made a bold prediction: a decade-long “gold rush” for Bitcoin fueled by Artificial Intelligence and exchange-traded funds.
Read more about that here: Bitcoin Entering a Decade-Long Gold Rush Fueled by AI and ETFs?