Elon Musk announces that Tesla cars can be bought using Bitcoin

The electric car company has become increasingly linked to cryptocurrencies.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the company will now accept bitcoin when it comes to selling its electric cars.

“Now you can buy a Tesla with bitcoin,” Chief Executive Elon Musk tweeted on Wednesday, fulfilling a promise the company made in a financial report last month.

Musk added that the cryptocurrency will not be converted to dollars and that payment with bitcoins will be available outside the US later this year.

Following the news, the price of Bitcoin rose to $ 56,242, about 3%, which would be enough to cover the price of the cheapest Tesla model, the Tesla Model 3, which costs less than $ 40,000.

If a customer decides to return a Tesla bought with bitcoins, the company said they can refund it in US dollars or bitcoins.

Dan Ives, a market analyst at Wedbush Securities, told CNN that the move was a “pivotal moment” for both Tesla and Bitcoin.

“We expect less than 5% of transactions to be made through Bitcoin over the next 12 to 18 months, however this could increase over time as acceptance of cryptocurrencies begins to rise in the next few years,” he added.

Musk has gone from being a cryptocurrency skeptic to embracing the new asset. The company recently invested $ 1.5 billion in Bitcoin.

“At this point I think Bitcoin is a good thing, and I am a Bitcoin supporter,” Musk said Jan. 31 during an interview on the Clubhouse networking app. “Many friends of mine have tried to convince me to get involved in Bitcoin for a long time.”

“I think Bitcoin is really about to get wide acceptance from mainstream finance folks,” he added.

Both Tesla and Bitcoin have risen considerably in value in the last 12 months, with Tesla shares rising from $ 100 to $ 600 and Bitcoin from $ 7,000 to more than $ 55,000 today.