Bitcoin’s price soared to an all-time high above $44,000, after Tesla revealed a big stake in the digital coin. Company will accept bitcoin as payment for products.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Tesla announced Monday that it bought $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin for “more flexibility to further diversify and maximize returns on our cash.” It also said it may invest a future portion of its assets in digital assets and that it will accept bitcoin as payment for products “subject to applicable laws and initially on a limited basis.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has made waves in recent days by pumping a silly cryptocurrency joke called Dogecoin; this is something more material. Tesla is selecting bitcoin as the cryptocurrency of its choice, helping to further cement the blockchain as the world’s best known. And that it may accept bitcoin-denominated transactions in the future could help bitcoin retain both value, and exchange volume, though we probably repeat ourselves.