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Roughly a quarter of Tesla’s earnings last quarter were due to recognizing a $600 million gain on Bitcoin. Tesla still came short of expectations.

Tesla and Bitcoin

Tesla is among the few large public companies that invested some of their cash into cryptocurrency.

Early in 2021, Tesla invested $1.5 billion in Bitcoin. Shortly after, the automaker started accepting the cryptocurrency as payment on new vehicles.

However, a few days later, Tesla took a step back with crypto by removing the Bitcoin payment option. The company noted concerns over the energy needs of the Bitcoin network:

Tesla has suspended vehicle purchases using Bitcoin. We are concerned about rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and transactions, especially coal, which has the worst emissions of any fuel.

This is a concern that many Tesla community members shared when Tesla first announced its Bitcoin investment, and many were angered by the fact that the company didn’t think about it in the first place.

At the time, Tesla noted that they were not selling their stake in Bitcoin and that they planned to resume taking Bitcoin payments once the network showed a higher mix of renewable energy.

Last year, Tesla made some moves that pointed to starting to take Bitcoin payments again, but it has yet to happen.

A year after the initial investment, Tesla’s Bitcoin holding increased to $2 billion, but the cryptocurrency lost a lot of its value in 2022 and the automaker’s position suffered – though the automaker also divested about 75% of its Bitcoin position during that time.

Tesla reported over $1.2 billion in proceeds from selling Bitcoins, but the automaker still sits on a good amount.

Tesla’s Bitcoin move in Q4 2024

Last quarter, Tesla moved its bitcoins around into new walletstriggering a lot of speculation. We suspected that Tesla might be moving things around to comply with the latest crypto accounting regulations.

Sure enough, with the release of Tesla’s Q4 2024 earnings yesterday, the automaker confirmed that it moved the Bitcoin to comply with the adoption of ASU 2023-08.

The move enabled Tesla to record a $600 million mark-to-market gain, accounting for a significant part of its $2.3 billion net income in Q4, which was already down 70% year-over-year.

Tesla disclosed in a SEC filing today:

Other income (expense), net, changed favorably by $523 million in the year ended December 31, 2024 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily due to remeasurement of our bitcoin digital assets to fair value in 2024 (see above), partially offset by unfavorable fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates on our intercompany balances.

If it wasn’t for Bitcoin, Tesla’s net income would be down 78% in Q4 2024 compared to Q4 2023.

If you remove regulatory credit, it would be down 86% and Tesla’s earnings would add up to barely more than $1 billion compared to its more than $1 trillion valuation.

Electrek’s Take

Bitcoin literally saved Tesla’s quarter. Unless there’s another major run-up in Bitcoin, that won’t happen again because Tesla has benefited from not measuring Bitcoin’s value for more than a year.

It was great timing for Tesla, but it won’t be able to save the company in Q1 2025, which is expected to be more challenging as it transitions its Model Y to the new version.

But based on the stock price today, it appears that Elon still has strong shareholders support as they still believe in his AI-related predictions.

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EV prices dipped in May – and Tesla Model Y led the slide

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EV prices dipped in May – and Tesla Model Y led the slide

EVs got a little more affordable in May, and Tesla’s price drop had a lot to do with that. According to new data from Kelley Blue Book, the average transaction price (ATP) for a new EV in May was $57,734. That’s down from $59,123 in April. Year-over-year, that’s a 1.1% drop.

At the same time, incentives are heating up. The average EV incentive in May hit $8,225, or 14.2% of the ATP. That’s more than double the average incentive across the broader auto industry and higher than last May’s 12%. According to Cox Automotive, that makes May the most incentive-heavy month since what Cox Automotive calls the beginning of the modern EV era, which is when EVs passed the 1% market share mark, in 2018.

Tesla’s prices played a big role in this shift. The company’s ATPs dropped 1.5% in May, landing at $55,277. Year-over-year, Tesla prices are down 2.8%.

The Model 3 and the Cybertruck inched up in price in May, but just barely – less than 1%. Every other Tesla model saw prices fall month-over-month. The Model Y, Tesla’s top seller and the most popular EV in the US, dropped 2.9% from April to an average price of $53,895.

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Read more: Cybertruck sales slump as EV prices rise and incentives dry up


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Check out Toyota’s new bZ5: A surprisingly stylish and low-cost EV for China

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Check out Toyota's new bZ5: A surprisingly stylish and low-cost EV for China

Toyota’s new electric SUV is about the size of a Tesla Model Y, but half the cost. The bZ5 officially launched in China on Tuesday, starting at around $18,000. Can it keep pace with BYD, Tesla, and others in China?

Toyota’s new bZ5 EV lands in China for $18,000

We knew it was coming soon. Toyota’s joint venture partner in China, FAW Toyota, announced last week that it was planning to officially launch the bZ5 on June 10.

The bZ5 is available in four trims: Joy, Pro, Pro Smart Edition, and an extended range Pro model. It’s offered with two BYD Blade battery options: 65.28 kWh and 73.98 kWh.

Powered by the standard battery, the Joy, Pro, and Pro Smart Edition models are rated for a CLTC range of 550 km (342 miles). Upgrading to the Pro trim with the larger battery provides a range of 630 km (391 miles). All trims can be recharged from 30% to 80% in approximately 27 minutes.

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The base model starts at 129,800 yuan ($18,000) while prices range up to 159,800 yuan ($22,000) for the Pro Smart Edition and extended range variants.

Toyota-bZ5-EV-SUV
Toyota launches the new bZ5 electric SUV in China (Source: FAW Toyota)

With a unique style, including Toyota’s new hammerhead front-end design, a full-length light bar, and a crossover fastback-like silhouette, the bZ5 is a sleek, sporty-looking EV.

The bZ5 is 4,780 mm in length, 1,866 mm in width, and 1,510 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,880 mm. For comparison, the Tesla Model Y measures 4,797 mm in length, 1,920 mm in width, and 1,624 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,890 mm.

In China, however, Toyota’s new EV is about half the cost. The base Tesla Model Y starts at 263,500 yuan ($36,700) in China, more than double the price of the bZ5, but offers a CLTC range of 593 km (368 miles).

Although the interior is relatively minimalistic, it’s packed with advanced tech and safety features. A 15.6″ infotainment sits at the center with a smaller driver display cluster.

Powered by Momenta 5.0 smart driving tech, the bZ5 is equipped with a new Toyota Pilot ADAS system. The system utilizes 33 sensors, which enable over 30 ADAS features, including assisted highway and city driving, as well as parking assistance. Higher trims include an added LiDAR sensor.

The bZ5 will sit between the bZ3X and bZ4X as Toyota expands its EV lineup in China. It follows the bZ3X, which launched in March starting at just 109,800 yuan ($15,000).

Source: CarNewsChina, FAW Toyota

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2026 Kia EV9 loses big rebates – but still offers $12.5k in savings

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2026 Kia EV9 loses big rebates – but still offers .5k in savings

Kia’s three-row electric SUV, the EV9, is back for 2026 with smaller up-front rebates, but thanks to the federal EV tax credit, you could still come out ahead.

The 2025 Kia EV9 started at $56,395 and came with up to $10,000 off, thanks to Kia’s generous deals. That helped clear out inventory fast. Now, for 2026, Kia is dialing its deals back a bit.

According to a dealer bulletin seen by CarsDirect, the 2026 EV9 is launching with a $4,000 Customer Cash incentive available on all trims for buyers. On top of that, there’s a $1,000 Competitive Bonus Program for shoppers who either lease or buy the EV9 by July 7. That bonus is open to anyone who owns a 2014-2026 vehicle from a competing brand – think BMW, Tesla, Toyota, and others. No trade-in is required.

That means eligible shoppers could knock $5,000 off the sticker price. And since the 2026 EV9 qualifies for the $7,500 federal EV tax credit (at least most trims), total savings could climb to $12,500.

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Leasing instead of buying? Kia’s also offering a $399 per month introductory lease deal on the 2026 EV9.

That $4,000 rebate is a step down from the up to $10,000 off the 2025 model, but most 2025 EV9s weren’t eligible for the $7,500 tax credit. The 2026 version is, as long as you’re looking at a trim that qualifies. The high-performance EV9 GT is built in South Korea, which makes it ineligible under current federal rules, but the other EV9 trims built in Georgia qualify.

The 2026 Kia EV9 will arrive at dealerships in the second half 2025. Click here to find a local dealer that will stock the 2026 Kia EV9. –trusted affiliate link


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Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*

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