Tesla 'Hodls,' Retains Over $700M In Bitcoin During First Quarter

Tesla has not sold any of its millions worth in Bitcoin (BTC) during the first quarter of 2024, Elon Musk's electric vehicle giant revealed in its Q1 financial disclosure.

Multiple cryptocurrency outlets noted that Tesla did not mention selling its BTC holdings in its latest earnings report filed Wednesday. The company also did not say anything about purchasing more of the world's largest digital asset by market value.

Prominent blockchain analysis firm Arkham Intelligence said later Wednesday that it already knew about Tesla's "hodl" status – a term famously used by crypto investors to describe the strategy of holding on to digital assets regardless of market sentiment, or in some crypto circles, it is defined as "hold on for dear life" to crypto holdings.

As per Arkham data, the last time Tesla had a Bitcoin transaction was two years ago. Since then, the company has been "hodling" over 11,000 BTC worth some $745 million, based on current prices.

Arkham said earlier last month that it had "identified" Tesla and SpaceX's Bitcoin digital wallets. In particular, Tesla's thousands of BTC are spread across 68 addresses, the on-chain activity tracker said.

Crypto users on Musk-owned X (formerly Twitter) quickly took notice of Tesla's move, with one user saying the tech giant may now "regret selling earlier." The last time Tesla cut down on its BTC holdings was in the second quarter of 2022, when it liquidated some $936 million worth of Bitcoin.

Other users had various theories about why Musk's EV behemoth company has been patiently holding on to its BTC in the last two years.

One suggested that the tech magnate "knows BTC is going to 100K and more." Another user had a similar theory, saying Tesla may be hodling until the world's first decentralized cryptocurrency hits $100,000 and Musk decides he no longer wants to "play" with the asset.

Some users made predictions on what the tech titan will do next after clinging to its Bitcoin stash. Some believe the company will only acquire more of the digital currency. There were a few who believe Tesla will "dump" some of its holdings in the upcoming bull run, which analysts have predicted in the weeks post-halving.

The X handle of crypto exchange Kraken said it was waiting for Tesla to accept BTC payments again, which it did back in 2021.

Meanwhile, Bitcoiners are expecting a bull run in the coming weeks following the halving event on April 20 that cut the BTC rewards for miners in half. Lower supply and higher demand are expected to propel prices up. If Bitcoin does climb significantly, Tesla may reap the benefits of being a hodler.