Tesla appeared to be tight-lipped about its crypto investments during yesterday’s results.
Tesla booked a $23 million impairment charge on its Bitcoin holdings in the second quarter.
The electric vehicle manufacturer wasn’t immune to the downturn that was seen in the crypto markets between April and June.
Crucially, Tesla confirmed that it hasn’t sold any more of the Bitcoin that it purchased back at the start of the year.
Elon Musk’s company had initially invested $1.5 billion into the cryptocurrency in February, and then went on to sell 10% of its holding to prove Bitcoin’s liquidity.
Ultimately, the impairment charge hasn’t been realized as an actual loss. Accounting rules means that the value of Tesla’s Bitcoin must be recorded at the lowest price that it hits over the quarter.
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What’s the Plan?
Tesla appeared to be tight-lipped about its crypto investments during yesterday’s results — and all that means that we’ve got very little indication about the company’s plans for the future.
During The B Word conference last week, Musk had said that Tesla was likely to start accepting Bitcoin payments again once there was clear evidence that at least 50% of the energy used by miners came from renewable sources.
He also revealed that SpaceX also has Bitcoin on its balance sheet — and that he has personally invested in BTC, ETH and DOGE.
Seeking to fight back against claims that he has contributed to the crazy levels of volatility seen in the crypto markets, Musk said:
“If the price of Bitcoin goes down, I lose money. I might pump, but I don’t dump. I definitely do not believe in getting the price high and selling … I would like to see Bitcoin succeed.”
