Elon Musk and Bitcoin (BTC) is a turbulent history that created an earthquake in February 2021, when Tesla revealed that it had purchased $1.5 billion worth of BTC. This was followed by an acceptance of BTC as a means of payment for the brand’s luxury electric vehicles, before this possibility was abruptly withdrawn. Could a new turnaround be in store?
Tesla happy with Bitcoin investment
As we reported, when Tesla presented its latest quarterly balance sheet, the gain on its initial $1.5 billion purchase of Bitcoin has now exceeded $1 billion. And as one might expect, this fact seems to have given Elon Musk and his company a lot of pause.
A new accounting document, filed this October 25 before the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), gives some clues about a forthcoming return of BTC payments for Tesla cars.
Indeed, after accepting BTC last March to buy its high-end electric cars, Tesla had finally suspended this crypto-payments option just 2 months later, in May 2021. One small sentence in Tesla’s latest report, however, seems full of promise:
“We may in the future revive the possibility of cryptocurrency (‘digital asset’) transactions (…)”
Bitcoin and cryptos: an alternative to fiat currencies?
The electric vehicle manufacturer indeed seems convinced that crypto-assets can play a leading role in the global economy, especially as a replacement for state fiat currencies (dollar, euro, …).
“We believe in the long-term potential of digital assets, both as an investment and as a liquid alternative to national currencies. As with any investment (…), we will be able to increase or decrease our holdings of digital assets at any time, depending on the needs of the business and our view of market conditions and the environment. (…) “
In addition to accepting Bitcoin for its cars again, could Tesla be preparing for more cryptocurrency purchases? If there’s a lot of state currency inflation lurking in the global economy, the answer would logically be yes, regarding Bitcoin and its limited supply.
But in that case, and beyond Bitcoin, what crypto-currencies might Elon Musk and his company also be interested in? Ethereum (ETH) ethers? Or perhaps the whimsical billionaire will go so far as to have Tesla buy Doges (DOGE)? One thing is certain in any case: Shiba Inu (SHIB) doesn’t seem to interest him at all.
