Advertisement

Tesla cars can now be bought with bitcoin, says Elon Musk

Click to play video: 'Tesla accepting bitcoin as payment will help normalize cryptocurrency, analysts says'
Tesla accepting bitcoin as payment will help normalize cryptocurrency, analysts says
WATCH: Tesla accepting bitcoin as payment will help normalize cryptocurrency, analysts says – Feb 8, 2021

Tesla customers can now buy its electric vehicles with bitcoin, its boss, Elon Musk, said on Wednesday, marking a significant step forward for the cryptocurrency’s use in commerce.

“You can now buy a Tesla with bitcoin,” Musk said on Twitter, adding that the option would be available outside the United States later this year.

The electric-car maker said last month it bought $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin and would soon accept it as a form of payment for cars, in a large stride toward mainstream acceptance that sent bitcoin soaring to a record high of nearly $62,000.

Bitcoin, the world’s biggest digital currency, rose more than 4% after Musk’s tweet and was last trading at $56,429.

Story continues below advertisement

Musk said bitcoin paid to Tesla would not be converted into traditional currency, but he gave few other details on how the bitcoin payments would be processed. The company was using “internal & open source software,” he said.

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Get daily National news

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Most mainstream companies such as AT&T Inc and Microsoft Corp that allow customers to pay with bitcoin typically use specialist payment processors that convert the cryptocurrency into, say, dollars and send the sum to the company.

Like other cryptocurrencies, bitcoin is still little used for commerce in major economies, hampered by its volatility and relatively costly and slow processing times.

Click to play video: 'SpaceX announces first all-civilian space flight planned for 2021'
SpaceX announces first all-civilian space flight planned for 2021

Musk, who regularly posts comments on Twitter about cryptocurrencies, last month criticized conventional cash, saying when it “has negative real interest, only a fool wouldn’t look elsewhere.”

He had said that the difference with cash made it “adventurous enough” for the S&P 500 company to hold the cryptocurrency.

Story continues below advertisement

Following Tesla’s investment in bitcoin, companies including Mastercard Inc and Bank of New York Mellon Corp have embraced the emerging asset, sparking predictions that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will become a regular part of investment portfolios.

Uber Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi said the ride-hailing company discussed and “quickly dismissed” the idea of investing in bitcoin. However, he said Uber could potentially accept the cryptocurrency as payment.

General Motors Co said it would evaluate whether bitcoin could be accepted as payment for its vehicles.

Tesla recently added “Technoking of Tesla” to Musk’s list of official titles.

Sponsored content

AdChoices