Bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, suffered a major blow on Thursday night after Elon Musk’s SpaceX announced that it had sold all its holdings of the digital asset. The move came as a surprise to many investors who had expected SpaceX to follow Tesla’s lead and embrace Bitcoin as a form of payment and investment.
According to a statement released by SpaceX, the company decided to liquidate its Bitcoin portfolio in order to fund its ambitious space exploration projects, such as the Starship rocket system and the Starlink satellite network. The statement said that SpaceX was committed to advancing humanity’s quest for interplanetary travel and that it needed to raise more capital to achieve its goals.
Bitcoin Plummets After Elon Musk’s SpaceX Sells Its Crypto Holdings
The statement did not disclose how much Bitcoin SpaceX had owned or how much it had sold, but some analysts estimated that the company could have made a profit of more than $1 billion from the sale, based on the price fluctuations of Bitcoin in the past year.
Bitcoin price drops below $40,000 after the news
The news of SpaceX’s Bitcoin sell-off sent shockwaves across the crypto market, triggering a massive sell-off among other investors who feared a further decline in the value of the digital currency. Bitcoin’s price dropped below $40,000 for the first time since February, losing more than 10% of its value in a matter of hours. Other cryptocurrencies, such as Ethereum, Dogecoin, and Cardano, also followed suit and plunged by double-digit percentages.
Many crypto enthusiasts expressed their disappointment and anger at Elon Musk, who has been seen as a vocal supporter and influencer of the crypto space. Musk, who is also the CEO of Tesla and Neuralink, has often tweeted about various cryptocurrencies, sometimes causing their prices to soar or plummet. In February, Tesla announced that it had bought $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin and that it would accept it as a form of payment for its electric vehicles. However, in May, Musk reversed his stance and said that Tesla would no longer accept Bitcoin due to environmental concerns over its high energy consumption.
Some crypto fans accused Musk of manipulating the market and betraying the crypto community. They also questioned his motives and credibility, as well as his vision for the future of humanity.
What does this mean for the future of crypto and space?
Despite the negative reaction from some crypto enthusiasts, some experts and analysts said that SpaceX’s decision to sell its Bitcoin holdings was not necessarily a bad thing for the crypto industry or the space sector. They argued that SpaceX’s move could be seen as a strategic and rational choice that reflected its priorities and values.
For instance, some experts said that SpaceX’s decision could help reduce the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining, which has been criticized for consuming more electricity than some countries. By selling its Bitcoin holdings, SpaceX could also free up more cash to invest in its innovative and groundbreaking space projects, such as sending humans to Mars and providing global internet access through satellites.
Moreover, some analysts said that SpaceX’s decision did not mean that it was abandoning the crypto space altogether. They pointed out that SpaceX still had a stake in Dogecoin, another cryptocurrency that Musk has frequently endorsed and promoted on social media. In fact, SpaceX announced in May that it would launch a mission to the moon in 2023 using Dogecoin as a form of payment. The mission, dubbed DOGE-1, would be the first-ever commercial lunar payload funded entirely by Dogecoin.
Therefore, some analysts said that SpaceX’s decision to sell its Bitcoin holdings could be seen as a sign of diversification and experimentation in the crypto space, rather than a rejection or betrayal. They also said that SpaceX’s decision could open up new opportunities and challenges for both the crypto industry and the space sector, as they both seek to innovate and disrupt the status quo.