- Tesla bought $1.5 billion worth of “digital assets,” then sold $272 million worth, during Q1, according to an earnings release Monday.
- It also recorded a $101 million “positive impact” toward profitability from sales of bitcoin during the quarter; it accounted for this as a reduction in operating expenses.
- It’s not immediately obvious how trading in bitcoin, which requires significant amounts of energy to mine, fits in with Tesla’s vision of accelerating the transition to sustainable energy.
Tesla reported first-quarter results on Monday, including a record quarterly net profit of $438 million on a GAAP basis.
As usual, those profits were buoyed by sales of environmental regulatory credits. But in a new wrinkle this quarter, the company’s sales of bitcoin during the quarter also contributed $101 million toward the bottom line.
In February, Tesla made waves when it announced a $1.5 billion purchase of bitcoin and said it may continue investing in cryptocurrency more broadly.
On Monday, Tesla’s shareholder update revealed that sales of bitcoin made a $101 million “positive impact” to the company’s profitability during the period ending March 31, 2021.
www.cnbc.com/2021/04/26/teslas-bitcoin-speculation-helped-boost-profits-this-quarter.html