Elon Musk's Tesla Reportedly Removes Bitcoin As Payment Option, But Keeps Dogecoin

Electric vehicle and clean energy company Tesla Inc TSLA has reportedly made changes to its payment page source code, removing Bitcoin BTC/USD while keeping Dogecoin DOGE/USD as an accepted cryptocurrency.

What Happened: According to Chinese reporter Wu Blockchain, Tesla has deleted Bitcoin in the source code of its payment page but still retains Dogecoin.

Rumors had earlier circulated in the crypto community regarding Tesla’s inclusion of both Bitcoin and Dogecoin in its payment page source code. 

"Upon verification, it was found that Bitcoin and Dogecoin were already present in the source code as early as January 2023. It appears that Tesla did not remove this code when they previously discontinued the option to pay with Bitcoin," Wu Blockchain tweeted.

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Why It Matters: The apparent removal of Bitcoin from the source code comes at a time when the largest cryptocurrency is facing increased regulatory scrutiny globally and concerns about its environmental impact due to energy-intensive mining operations. 

However, Tesla has not yet released an official statement if it has removed BTC from the payment option.

In contrast, Tesla’s retention of Dogecoin in the source code is considered intriguing. Initially created as a meme cryptocurrency, Dogecoin has gained significant popularity and garnered endorsements from prominent figures, including Tesla CEO Musk himself. Musk, known for his vocal support of Dogecoin, has even referred to himself as the “Dogefather” during his appearance on Saturday Night Live.

Tesla did not transact in Bitcoin, nor in buy or sale transactions, in the second quarter, the earnings release showed. The balance sheet showed that as of June 30, 2023, it held digital assets, net, of $184 million, the same as in the previous two quarters.

Tesla did not respond to Benzinga’s request to comment, at the time of publishing.

Price Action: At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $29,774, down 0.24% in the last 24 hours, according to Benzinga Pro.

Photo Courtesy: Shutterstock.com

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