Why did Elon Musk Remove Bitcoin from His Twitter Bio?

Currently figuring amongst the world's richest individuals, Elon Musk was responsible for the recent uprise in Bitcoin prices after endorsing the digital asset publicly and investing a solid amount of money to buy Bitcoin . Naturally, the crypto industry reacted and Bitcoin went bullish mode within a blink of an eye. Other cryptocurrencies followed the trend and increased their valuation, which led to a profitable environment for investors who made the right moves at the right time. Nonetheless, on February 4th the eccentric billionaire decided to remove Bitcoin from his Twitter bio, which generated controversy amongst the asset's enthusiasts and critics. How Tesla's CEO Sparked an Upheaval on Bitcoin Prices Despite the economic crisis generated by the pandemics, the crypto industry was going steady, especially after Ethereum announced its 2.0 layering update and DeFi started beating all-time highs in TVL (Total Value Locked). However, in early 2021 the crypto industry went crazy after Tesla bought $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin. Plus, the company announced that it would start accepting bitcoin as a payment method for its products. After the news about the huge investment made by Tesla, Inc. and the endorsements made by Musk on his Twitter account, the market reacted accordingly. Bitcoin went full bullish-mode on to beat its all-time pricing peak of US43,500 per token. Many experts showed their criticism online, stating that such a reaction was simply proof of the amateurishness of many so-called investors, acting out of complete silliness and irrational behavior. The Eccentric Billionaire Strikes Once Again Nonetheless, only one week after posting #Bitcoin on his Twitter bio, Elon Musk decided to remove it, affecting the Bitcoin price . Instead, he went to post several tweets endorsing Dogecoin, another well-known cryptocurrency. Launched in late 2013 as a meme cryptocurrency, the digital asset has a Shiba Inu dog as its symbol/logo and is based on an underlying technology similar to Litecoin. With unlimited supply and low price, the altcoin has had bullish moments before Musk's endorsement, especially due to its solid community of supporters. Musk went on with his new series of tweets, first writing Doge and then posting Dogecoin is the people's crypto just a few minutes later. In a separate tweet, the billionaire wrote No highs, no low, only Doge, which seemed to be an explanation of his interest behind the meme coin. Within minutes, Dogecoin's price increased by about 37%, making it bigger than companies such as Wendy’s and Harley Davidson, according to Business Insider . Are You Serious, Mr. Musk? Elon Musk is well-known for his eccentric behavior, being described as a sarcastic and witty individual, who is not afraid of some self-deprecating jokes and acid comments about several subjects. At the same week, Musk stated that at times he likes to make "jokes about Dogecoin". According to his words, the tweets were meant to be jokes, given the fact that Dogecoin was created as a joke to make fun of cryptocurrencies. What Would Be Behind Tesla's Strategy to Acquire a Fortune in Bitcoins? It is still hard to understand it clearly. Looking at the company's most recent financial reports (last 12 months), Tesla's total revenue was approximately 31 billion dollars, despite having low profitability when compared to other players in the market. Add to that a relevant long-term debt ($ 9.6 billion), which was controlled after the explosion of Tesla's shares in the stock market, which "injected" enough capital for the company to be in a steady financial position. A 1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin purchase (almost 10% of Tesla’s annual cash) from the company is a risky bet, especially when considering the investments and maintenance costs associated with Tesla, Inc. Market Manipulation or Musk's Eccentric Behavior? - Final Thoughts Anyone who follows Elon Musk's participation on Twitter could see that the billionaire intensified his activity on the social network earlier this year. In addition to all the hype surrounding cryptocurrencies, Musk generated controversy by tweeting about the actions of retailer GameStop, which were discussed in several threads online and ended up being highlighted after he participated in the debate. It is impossible to deny Musk's behavior-manipulating power, especially when considering his 46 million followers on Twitter. As a reaction to his tweets endorsing bitcoin, many crypto enthusiasts and investors started to buy the digital asset as it was the end of the world, which spiked BTC price in a matter of hours. Consciously or unconsciously, Mr. Musk has enough power to guide the market, bringing comical and irrelevant issues (e.g., Dogecoin) to the center of the discussion. Meanwhile, he continues to generate anxiety and expectation to people, who continue to speculate whether the fact that he removed #Bitcoin from his Twitter bio will have a significant impact on the market.