Key Takeaways
- Tesla’s Bitcoin investment has reached a $1 billion valuation.
- The news comes three years after Elon Musk’s company invested $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency.
- Tesla moved over 11,500 Bitcoin worth almost $770 million to wallets with unknown owners last month.
Tesla’s early bet on Bitcoin is continuing to pay off.
Elon Musk’s electric vehicle manufacturer, the fourth-largest Bitcoin holder among publicly traded companies, was one of the earliest institutional investors to bet on crypto.
Although Tesla may currently be reaping Bitcoin’s benefits, the broader question is what Elon Musk plans to do with it.
Tesla’s Bitcoin Holdings Hit One Billion
Tesla’s Bitcoin stash hit a $1 billion valuation on Nov. 12, as the asset reached a new all-time high.
According to data from Arkham Intelligence, this holding is equivalent to $1,007,696,999.20 at a price of $87,555.00, with holdings of 11,509 BTC.
The value of the holdings has more than doubled since the end of 2023 as the market has enjoyed a revival following the promise of crypto regulatory changes in the U.S.
Musk’s net worth has skyrocketed to over $300 billion following Trump’s win, fueled by optimism for his Tesla, SpaceX, and X plans.
Tesla’s Bitcoin Journey
In 2021, Tesla went against the grain of other businesses and purchased $1.5 billion in Bitcoin.
This move was part of Musk’s strategy to diversify Tesla’s corporate treasury and solidified the billionaire’s interest in cryptocurrencies.
Alongside the purchase, Musk announced that Tesla accepted the digital asset as payment. However, this was reversed a few months later due to “environmental concerns.”
In its Q2 2022 earnings report, Tesla disclosed that it had sold 75% of its Bitcoin holdings, which amounted to approximately $936 million.
After his prior support, the sale raised questions about Musk’s commitment to Bitcoin. However, Tesla maintained that it still believed in the long-term potential of cryptocurrencies and was holding onto the remaining Bitcoin in its balance sheet.
Musk said the sale increased the company’s cash position due to supply chain issues.
Will Musk Cash Out?
Tesla moved over 11,500 Bitcoin worth almost $770 million to wallets with unknown owners last month.
The dramatic move marked the first time Tesla had interacted with its holdings since selling most of them at the beginning of 2022.
Some believed the company may have been gearing up to sell again. However, none of the wallets seemed to be related to any crypto exchanges.
There has not yet been any evidence that this is the case, and with Bitcoin’s positive price, it’s unlikely Musk and Tesla will sell now.
As Donald Trump looks set to bring Musk closer to the White House in January 2025, the two crypto-positive figures could potentially help crypto’s price climb even further.
Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
