Elon Musk's Tesla (TSLA) disclosed in its first-quarter 2026 earnings report that its Bitcoin holdings remained unchanged, maintaining its stockpile of 11,509 BTC. The company did not buy or sell any Bitcoin during the quarter, continuing a holding pattern that began in January 2025.
However, Tesla booked a significant after-tax impairment loss of $173 million on its digital asset holdings. This loss reflects the decline in Bitcoin's market value from approximately $90,000 at the start of 2026 to around $68,000 by the end of March. The accounting rules require companies to recognize an impairment charge when the fair market value of a digital asset falls below its carrying value, even if the asset is not sold.
In terms of its overall financial performance, Tesla reported better-than-expected earnings but slightly missed on revenue. For Q1 2026, the company posted revenue of $22.39 billion, just below analyst estimates of $22.71 billion. Earnings per share came in at $0.41, surpassing the consensus forecast of $0.37. Following the earnings release, TSLA stock was trading about 4% higher in after-hours trading.
Tesla's Bitcoin Journey: The company first entered the cryptocurrency market in February 2021, acquiring 43,200 BTC for roughly $1.5 billion. In March 2021, it sold approximately 4,320 BTC (10% of its position) to test market liquidity. By July 2022, during the bear market, Tesla had reduced its holdings to 9,720 BTC. A small increase in January 2025 brought the total back to the current level of 11,509 BTC, where it has remained static.
