Elon Musk’s Bitcoin Write-Down Sparks Confusion Among Crypto Community

SpaceX’s Bitcoin Write-Down Report

On Aug. 18, SpaceX’s Bitcoin write-down report caused a stir in the crypto community. The Wall Street Journal’s publication of the report left many perplexed, as they questioned whether the company had sold $373 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) in 2021–2022 or if they had just reduced their Bitcoin exposure by the same amount.

Rumors spread on social media that SpaceX had disposed of its entire BTC holdings, while others were unable to verify the amount based on the report’s wording. Earlier in 2021, Elon Musk had revealed that both SpaceX and Tesla held Bitcoin on their balance sheets. Tesla had made its BTC holdings public, but there was no estimate for SpaceX’s BTC holdings, which has been the source of the confusion.

Tesla had purchased $1.5 billion worth of BTC during the bull market, but reported that it had sold 72% of its holdings in Q2 2022. The speculation around SpaceX’s write-off was also believed to be one of the key catalysts behind the $2,000 BTC price drop, although some argued it was not the cause. To date, Musk has yet to comment on the issue, but the market FUD has caused him to be criticized by Bitcoin supporters who accused him of buying high and selling low, while others called it market FUD.

Elon Musk’s BTC Holdings

One Reddit user suggested that Elon Musk might be running out of cash across all his companies, and speculated that he might sell “all of his Bitcoin and doge within the next 6 months.”

The idea of Musk selling his BTC holdings was met with criticism from users on X (formerly known as Twitter), who called him out for his “paper hands.” Others linked the BTC write-down to X’s ambition of becoming a payment giant.

Despite the speculation, Bitcoin proponents urged traders to hodl BTC and not be swayed by market FUD.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin’s price was trading at $26,433, having overcome the $26,000 resistance level. However, BTC’s price decline of 9% last night also led to a sharp downturn in the altcoin market, with top altcoins recording a double-digit decline.