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URLhttps://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html
Last Crawled2026-02-11 16:10:39 (2 months ago)
First Indexed2021-03-24 12:18:33 (5 years ago)
HTTP Status Code200
Meta TitleTesla Will Accept Bitcoin as Payment, Elon Musk says. - The New York Times
Meta DescriptionThe electric-car maker will hold the digital currency and handle the crypto transactions internally.
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Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT The electric-car maker will hold the digital currency and handle the crypto transactions internally. Elon Musk, the chief executive of Tesla, said on Twitter that the company would accept Bitcoin as payment for cars in the United States. Credit... Brendan Smialowski/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images March 24, 2021 Elon Musk, the chief executive of Tesla who recently added “Technoking” to his title, said on Wednesday that the company would accept Bitcoin as payment for cars in the United States, a move that is at odds with the company’s image as an environmentally friendly electric-car maker. Tesla will hold the digital currency, rather than convert payments to dollars, and handle the crypto transactions internally, Mr. Musk said. “Bitcoin paid to Tesla will be retained as Bitcoin, not converted to fiat currency,” Mr. Musk explained in a tweet. That means when someone buys a Tesla with Bitcoin, the price of the car could well rise — or fall — over time. In other words, Tesla is turning one-time payments into assets with shifting value, or, essentially, investments. Buyers outside the United States will have the option to use Bitcoin “later this year,” Mr. Musk said. Mr. Musk’s embrace of Bitcoin is hailed by many cryptocurrency enthusiasts, but the digital currency’s affect on climate change has come under increasing scrutiny. “Bitcoin uses more electricity per transaction than any other method known to mankind, and so it’s not a great climate thing,” Bill Gates recently told The New York Times . Depending on the study , the annual carbon emissions from the electricity required to mine Bitcoin and process its transactions are equal to the amount emitted by all of New Zealand. Or Argentina. There is also an electronic waste problem associated with bitcoin mining, argues Alex de Vries, an economist who created the Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index and tracks the unintended consequences of digital trends. Bitcoin mining is done with highly specialized equipment that has a short life span, and the tools cannot be repurposed, making investment in the digital currency even more problematic from an environmental perspective, he told The Times. Mr. Musk said last month that the company bought $1.5 billion in Bitcoin for its treasury . The announcement on Wednesday confirms speculation in the crypto community that Tesla would not simply contract out payments to a third-party processor and treat Bitcoin like dollars. Since Tesla’s Bitcoin purchase in February, the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies has soared to record highs, but trading has been volatile. Analysts are pleased with the symbolism at least. “This is a seminal moment for Tesla and for the crypto world,” wrote Daniel Ives and Strecker Backe, analysts at the investment firm Wedbush. “This morning’s news formalizes the strategy of Musk and Tesla diving into the deep end of the pool of bitcoin and crypto from a transactional perspective.” Ephrat Livni reports from Washington on the intersection of business and policy for DealBook. Previously, she was a senior reporter at Quartz, covering law and politics, and has practiced law in the public and private sectors.   Related Content More in Business Laura Partain for The New York Times Yvonne Tnt/BFA.com, via Shutterstock Eric Lee for The New York Times Henry Romero/Reuters Editors’ Picks Robert Samuel Hanson Alice Zoo for The New York Times Trending in The Times Nicolas Ortega Stanislaw Tokarski/Alamy Andrew Faulk for The New York Times California Department of Fish and Wildlife Kenny Holston/The New York Times Luke Macgregor/Reuters Lauren DeCicca for The New York Times Andrey Kasay Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
Markdown
[Skip to content](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html#site-content)[Skip to site index](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html#site-index) Search & Section Navigation Section Navigation Search [Business](https://www.nytimes.com/section/business) [Log in](https://myaccount.nytimes.com/auth/login?response_type=cookie&client_id=vi&redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2Fsubscription%2Fonboarding-offer%3FcampaignId%3D7JFJX%26EXIT_URI%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.nytimes.com%252F2021%252F03%252F24%252Fbusiness%252Felon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html&asset=masthead) Wednesday, February 11, 2026 [Today’s Paper](https://www.nytimes.com/section/todayspaper) [Business](https://www.nytimes.com/section/business)\|Tesla will accept Bitcoin as payment, Elon Musk says. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html - Share full article Advertisement [SKIP ADVERTISEMENT](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html#after-top) Supported by [SKIP ADVERTISEMENT](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html#after-sponsor) # Tesla will accept Bitcoin as payment, Elon Musk says. The electric-car maker will hold the digital currency and handle the crypto transactions internally. - Share full article ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/03/24/business/24econ-brf-bitcoin/merlin_185072766_df366739-88e5-4bab-9a25-106d96440488-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Elon Musk, the chief executive of Tesla, said on Twitter that the company would accept Bitcoin as payment for cars in the United States.Credit...Brendan Smialowski/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images By [Ephrat Livni](https://www.nytimes.com/by/ephrat-livni) March 24, 2021 Elon Musk, the chief executive of Tesla who recently added “Technoking” to his title, said on Wednesday that the company would accept [Bitcoin as payment for cars](https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1374617643446063105?s=20) in the United States, a move that is at odds with the company’s image as an environmentally friendly electric-car maker. Tesla will hold the digital currency, rather than convert payments to dollars, and handle the crypto transactions internally, Mr. Musk said. “Bitcoin paid to Tesla will be retained as Bitcoin, not converted to fiat currency,” Mr. Musk explained in a tweet. That means when someone buys a Tesla with Bitcoin, the price of the car could well rise — or fall — over time. In other words, Tesla is turning one-time payments into assets with shifting value, or, essentially, investments. Buyers outside the United States will have the option to use Bitcoin “later this year,” Mr. Musk said. Mr. Musk’s embrace of Bitcoin is hailed by many cryptocurrency enthusiasts, but the digital currency’s affect on climate change has come under increasing scrutiny. “Bitcoin uses more electricity per transaction than any other method known to mankind, and so it’s not a great climate thing,” [Bill Gates recently told The New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/business/dealbook/bitcoin-climate-change.html). Depending on the [study](https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-56012952), the annual carbon emissions from the electricity required to mine Bitcoin and process its transactions are equal to the amount emitted by all of New Zealand. Or Argentina. There is also an electronic waste problem associated with bitcoin mining, argues Alex de Vries, an economist who created the [Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index](https://digiconomist.net/bitcoin-energy-consumption) and tracks the unintended consequences of digital trends. Bitcoin mining is done with highly specialized equipment that has a short life span, and the tools cannot be repurposed, making investment in the digital currency even more problematic from an environmental perspective, he told The Times. Mr. Musk said last month that the company bought [\$1.5 billion in Bitcoin for its treasury](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/08/business/tesla-bought-bitcoin.html). The announcement on Wednesday confirms speculation in the crypto community that Tesla would not simply contract out payments to a third-party processor and treat Bitcoin like dollars. Since Tesla’s Bitcoin purchase in February, the price of [Bitcoin](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/08/technology/dogecoin-bitcoin-elon-musk-snoop-dogg.html) and other cryptocurrencies has soared to record highs, but trading has been volatile. ## Editors’ Picks [![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/05/multimedia/00Trav-Nayarit-Mexico-lhjp/00Trav-Nayarit-Mexico-lhjp-thumbLarge.jpg)Surf Shacks and Ocean Breezes: Welcome to Riviera Nayarit](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/travel/mexico-visiting-riviera-nayarit.html) [![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/06/multimedia/06FD-EASY-CHOCOLATE-DESSERTS-Turtle-bars-1-pgjb/06FD-EASY-CHOCOLATE-DESSERTS-Turtle-bars-1-pgjb-thumbLarge.jpg)16 Easy Desserts for People Who Really, Really Love Chocolate](https://cooking.nytimes.com/article/easy-chocolate-dessert-recipes-valentines-day) [![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2022/12/22/multimedia/22Airfryer-Roundup-Chicken-Breast-1-f915/22Airfryer-Roundup-Chicken-Breast-1-f915-thumbLarge.jpg)Our Best Air-Fryer Recipes](https://cooking.nytimes.com/article/best-air-fryer-recipes) Advertisement [SKIP ADVERTISEMENT](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html#after-pp_edpick) [Analysts are pleased](https://wedbush.bluematrix.com/sellside/EmailDocViewer?encrypt=0585d1a2-fe61-4cb2-a943-cbec171da9b0&mime=pdf&co=wedbush&id=equityresearchdistribution@wedbush.com&source=mail) with the symbolism at least. “This is a seminal moment for Tesla and for the crypto world,” wrote Daniel Ives and Strecker Backe, analysts at the investment firm Wedbush. “This morning’s news formalizes the strategy of Musk and Tesla diving into the deep end of the pool of bitcoin and crypto from a transactional perspective.” [Ephrat Livni](https://www.nytimes.com/by/ephrat-livni) reports from Washington on the intersection of business and policy for DealBook. Previously, she was a senior reporter at Quartz, covering law and politics, and has practiced law in the public and private sectors. See more on: [Elon Musk](https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/elon-musk) - Share full article *** ## Inside the World of Cryptocurrencies *** - **Cryptocurrency’s Slide:** After months of declining prices and dispiriting setbacks, the crypto industry has found itself deep in one of its periodic slumps — [a so-called crypto winter](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/05/technology/bitcoin-price-drop-crypto-market.html). - **Binance:** Ties between the exchange and Trump’s company, World Liberty Financial, [have only strengthened](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/business/binance-trump-crypto.html) since he pardoned Binance’s founder, Changpeng Zhao. - **Trump Family’s Crypto Company:** An investment firm tied to the United Arab Emirates [purchased nearly half of the Trump family’s cryptocurrency company](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/01/us/politics/trump-crypto-uae-world-liberty.html), making the family business partners with the U.A.E. even as Trump negotiated foreign policy matters with the Middle Eastern nation. - **Crypto Billionaire ‘Counterforce’:** Two prominent billionaires in the tech and crypto industries plan to spend tens of millions of dollars this year in a bid to elect moderate state legislators in California and [push back against powerful state unions](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/us/politics/crypto-billionaires-try-to-build-a-moderate-counterforce-in-california-politics.html). - **Gemini Trust:** Federal regulators [have dropped a long-running lawsuit against the prominent cryptocurrency firm,](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/23/us/politics/sec-crypto-winklevoss.html) owned by the Winklevoss twins with ties to President Trump, in the Trump administration’s latest pullback in enforcement of the industry. - **Crypto Guide:** Our tech columnist believes that crypto is terribly explained. [His mega-F.A.Q. is an attempt to fix that](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/03/18/technology/cryptocurrency-crypto-guide.html). ## Related Content ### [More in Business](https://www.nytimes.com/section/business) - [The Whiskey World Is Reeling, but This Company Has Bigger Troubles](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/dining/drinks/uncle-nearest-whiskey.html) ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/10/multimedia/10FD-Nearest-Whiskey-promo/10FD-Nearest-Whiskey-promo-square640-v2.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Laura Partain for The New York Times - [The Rise and Fall of a Beauty Mogul](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/style/pat-mcgrath-cosmetics-bankruptcy.html) ![Pat McGrath in 2024.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/12/multimedia/11ST-PAT-MCGRATH-swap-mqtj/11ST-PAT-MCGRATH-swap-mqtj-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Yvonne Tnt/BFA.com, via Shutterstock - [Fake Post About Racist Video Looked to Be Trump’s on Truth Social](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/business/trump-truth-social-fake-post-obamas.html) ![The spread of the fake post appeared to be aided in part by the confusion surrounding how President Trump came to post the original racist video and why it was taken down.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/07/multimedia/07biz-truthsocial-fake-vfzh/07biz-truthsocial-fake-vfzh-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Eric Lee for The New York Times - [Why the N.F.L. 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Advertisement [SKIP ADVERTISEMENT](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html#after-top) The electric-car maker will hold the digital currency and handle the crypto transactions internally. ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/03/24/business/24econ-brf-bitcoin/merlin_185072766_df366739-88e5-4bab-9a25-106d96440488-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Elon Musk, the chief executive of Tesla, said on Twitter that the company would accept Bitcoin as payment for cars in the United States.Credit...Brendan Smialowski/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images March 24, 2021 Elon Musk, the chief executive of Tesla who recently added “Technoking” to his title, said on Wednesday that the company would accept [Bitcoin as payment for cars](https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1374617643446063105?s=20) in the United States, a move that is at odds with the company’s image as an environmentally friendly electric-car maker. Tesla will hold the digital currency, rather than convert payments to dollars, and handle the crypto transactions internally, Mr. Musk said. “Bitcoin paid to Tesla will be retained as Bitcoin, not converted to fiat currency,” Mr. Musk explained in a tweet. That means when someone buys a Tesla with Bitcoin, the price of the car could well rise — or fall — over time. In other words, Tesla is turning one-time payments into assets with shifting value, or, essentially, investments. Buyers outside the United States will have the option to use Bitcoin “later this year,” Mr. Musk said. Mr. Musk’s embrace of Bitcoin is hailed by many cryptocurrency enthusiasts, but the digital currency’s affect on climate change has come under increasing scrutiny. “Bitcoin uses more electricity per transaction than any other method known to mankind, and so it’s not a great climate thing,” [Bill Gates recently told The New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/business/dealbook/bitcoin-climate-change.html). Depending on the [study](https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-56012952), the annual carbon emissions from the electricity required to mine Bitcoin and process its transactions are equal to the amount emitted by all of New Zealand. Or Argentina. There is also an electronic waste problem associated with bitcoin mining, argues Alex de Vries, an economist who created the [Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index](https://digiconomist.net/bitcoin-energy-consumption) and tracks the unintended consequences of digital trends. Bitcoin mining is done with highly specialized equipment that has a short life span, and the tools cannot be repurposed, making investment in the digital currency even more problematic from an environmental perspective, he told The Times. Mr. Musk said last month that the company bought [\$1.5 billion in Bitcoin for its treasury](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/08/business/tesla-bought-bitcoin.html). The announcement on Wednesday confirms speculation in the crypto community that Tesla would not simply contract out payments to a third-party processor and treat Bitcoin like dollars. Since Tesla’s Bitcoin purchase in February, the price of [Bitcoin](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/08/technology/dogecoin-bitcoin-elon-musk-snoop-dogg.html) and other cryptocurrencies has soared to record highs, but trading has been volatile. [Analysts are pleased](https://wedbush.bluematrix.com/sellside/EmailDocViewer?encrypt=0585d1a2-fe61-4cb2-a943-cbec171da9b0&mime=pdf&co=wedbush&id=equityresearchdistribution@wedbush.com&source=mail) with the symbolism at least. “This is a seminal moment for Tesla and for the crypto world,” wrote Daniel Ives and Strecker Backe, analysts at the investment firm Wedbush. “This morning’s news formalizes the strategy of Musk and Tesla diving into the deep end of the pool of bitcoin and crypto from a transactional perspective.” [Ephrat Livni](https://www.nytimes.com/by/ephrat-livni) reports from Washington on the intersection of business and policy for DealBook. Previously, she was a senior reporter at Quartz, covering law and politics, and has practiced law in the public and private sectors. ## Related Content [More in Business](https://www.nytimes.com/section/business) - ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/10/multimedia/10FD-Nearest-Whiskey-promo/10FD-Nearest-Whiskey-promo-square640-v2.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Laura Partain for The New York Times - ![Pat McGrath in 2024.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/12/multimedia/11ST-PAT-MCGRATH-swap-mqtj/11ST-PAT-MCGRATH-swap-mqtj-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Yvonne Tnt/BFA.com, via Shutterstock - ![The spread of the fake post appeared to be aided in part by the confusion surrounding how President Trump came to post the original racist video and why it was taken down.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/07/multimedia/07biz-truthsocial-fake-vfzh/07biz-truthsocial-fake-vfzh-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Eric Lee for The New York Times - ![Bad Bunny performing in Mexico City in December. 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The owner Robert Harrison said they use this baby because his mother, Loretta, wanted “the world to know that this is a proud, Black-owned business.”](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/11/multimedia/11FD-CAKE-JESUS-15-qfgp/11FD-CAKE-JESUS-15-qfgp-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=350) - ![Alan Birchall, the watchmaker and former watch repairer, designed Pièce d’Essai No. 00 to his own taste. “I wasn’t thinking about trends, or what people expect,” he said. “I just thought, what is the perfect watch for me?”](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/12/multimedia/12sp-watches-birchall-inyt-01-kbjg/12sp-watches-birchall-inyt-01-kbjg-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=350) Andrew Faulk for The New York Times - ![The gray wolf known as BEY03F in April 2025.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/03/08/multimedia/08xp-wolf2/08xp-wolf-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=350) California Department of Fish and Wildlife - ![President Trump unveiled TrumpRx last Thursday. The 43 drugs listed on the government site have prices ranging from \$3 to over \$5,500.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/11/multimedia/11DAILY-trumprx-alt-vkqb/11DAILY-trumprx-alt-vkqb-square640-v3.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=350) Kenny Holston/The New York Times - ![BP is turning back to its traditional oil and gas business in an effort to revive its fortunes.](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/10/multimedia/biz-bp-oil-kvfq/biz-bp-oil-kvfq-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=350) Luke Macgregor/Reuters - ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/01/29/multimedia/00int-malaysia-durian-promo/00int-malaysia-durian-01-wmzp-square640-v2.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=350) Lauren DeCicca for The New York Times - ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/02/10/opinion/10rattner/10rattner-square640.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=350) Andrey Kasay Advertisement [SKIP ADVERTISEMENT](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/business/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin.html#after-bottom)
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