Tesla (TSLA) likely already made over $600 million from Bitcoin investment

Tesla (TSLA) has likely already made over $600 million from its recent investment in Bitcoin due to a surge in value that followed the automaker’s move.

Tesla invests in Bitcoin

Last week, Tesla announced that it changed its investment policy to start adding cryptocurrency and gold to its holding.

Most notably, the company confirmed that it included a $1.5 billion investment in bitcoins:

In January 2021, we updated our investment policy to provide us with more flexibility to further diversify and maximize returns on our cash that is not required to maintain adequate operating liquidity. As part of the policy, which was duly approved by the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors, we may invest a portion of such cash in certain alternative reserve assets including digital assets, gold bullion, gold exchange-traded funds and other assets as specified in the future. Thereafter, we invested an aggregate $1.50 billion in bitcoin under this policy and may acquire and hold digital assets from time to time or long-term.

Tesla didn’t disclose the number of bitcoins it acquired nor the average purchase price, but the price of bitcoins averaged around $35,000 during January.

It means that Tesla should have around 43,000 bitcoins.

Tesla is already making a lot of money

The price has surged 45% since last month, and 15% of that alone happened following the announcement that Tesla invested in the cryptocurrency.

The value of a bitcoin is now trading at close to $52,000 USD.

It means that Tesla’s bitcoins could now be worth as much as $2.2 billion, and the automaker likely already made over $600 million of unrealized gains from the investment.

Electrek’s Take

While this seems like a genius move, it’s also partly a self-fulfilled prophecy since Tesla’s, or maybe more Elon Musk’s, stamp of approval on bitcoin is sending the value surging.

The move is also not making all Tesla fans happy since some don’t think that it aligns with the mission due to extreme energy need associated with bitcoin.

The cryptocurrency relies on “miners” to process transaction on a decentralized network of computers, which require a lot of power.

However, some also think that bitcoin is a net positive since for renewable energy since electricity sources from fossil fuels are starting to cost more than renewable energy – making the latter a better choice to run crypto mining rigs.

Therefore, bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies could actually encourage more investments in renewable energy.

Personally, I have a few crypto mining rigs, and they run on hydro power. Furthermore, in the winter, they replace my electric heating system since they emit a lot of heat, and I place them strategically around the house to spread the heat.

It’s a really efficient way to mine.

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