SpaceX Shifts $153 Million in Bitcoin After Three Years of Dormancy Amid Rising Political Pressures
Imagine holding onto a massive treasure chest of digital gold for years, only to suddenly rearrange it right when the world is watching. That’s exactly what SpaceX did on August 10, 2025, stirring up curiosity in the crypto community. The aerospace giant, led by visionary Elon Musk, transferred 1,308 Bitcoin—valued at around $153 million based on today’s market prices—marking its first on-chain activity since 2022. This move, spotted by blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence, involved pulling funds from 16 older Pay-to-Public-Key-Hash (P2PKH) addresses and funneling them into one modern SegWit-compatible Pay-to-Witness-Public-Key-Hash (P2WPKH) address. There it sits, untouched as of this writing, potentially streamlining management and cutting future transaction costs. It’s like consolidating scattered savings into a single high-efficiency account, hinting at smart planning rather than panic.
SpaceX, the innovative private company Musk founded back in 2002, first revealed its Bitcoin stash in July 2021, right alongside Tesla’s announcement. This was all part of Musk’s push to mix traditional assets with crypto, boosting adoption in bold ways. While the exact motive behind this latest transfer remains a mystery—neither SpaceX nor Musk has weighed in—it feels like a calculated step in an unpredictable landscape. Drawing from Arkham Intelligence data, it’s clear this isn’t just random; it’s strategic, much like how a chess master repositions pieces before a big play.
Political Storm Clouds Gather Over SpaceX Bitcoin Holdings and Defense Deals
This Bitcoin shuffle couldn’t come at a more tense moment for SpaceX. As of August 10, 2025, the company is wading through choppy political waters. Earlier this year, reports surfaced about the Trump administration considering a review or outright cancellation of roughly $22 billion in SpaceX contracts, sparked by public spats between Musk and Trump on the social platform X. Sure, most deals were labeled too vital to U.S. security to scrap, but the drama underscored vulnerabilities. It’s a stark reminder of how even giants like SpaceX can feel the heat from shifting alliances, contrasting sharply with the stability crypto offers as an independent asset class.
Adding fuel to the fire, the Pentagon just announced on August 10, 2025, plans to broaden partnerships for the massive $175 billion Golden Dome missile defense project. This space-based satellite network aims to spot and counter incoming threats, but worries about depending too heavily on SpaceX have led to opening bids to other players. As Reuters highlighted, this diversification push ensures the initiative isn’t all eggs in one basket, promoting resilience in national defense. For SpaceX, it’s like watching a once-exclusive club invite new members, potentially reshaping its role in government-backed ventures.
Elon Musk’s Wild Ride with Bitcoin, Memecoins, and Beyond
Elon Musk’s dance with cryptocurrency has been a rollercoaster that’s kept us all on our toes since the 2021 Bitcoin surge. Remember how his enthusiastic tweets about Dogecoin skyrocketed the memecoin’s value, only for it to plummet 30% after his “Saturday Night Live” stint? It was a perfect analogy for crypto’s volatility—like a viral party that crashes when the hype fades. That year, Tesla dove in with a $1.5 billion Bitcoin buy and even accepted it for payments briefly, before pulling back due to environmental worries and selling off some holdings.
Fast-forward to Musk’s 2022 takeover of Twitter, rebranded as X, where he started building toward a full-fledged financial hub. X has snagged money transmitter licenses nationwide, and leaked code hints at crypto wallet features in the works. Though nothing’s live yet, blockchain tech is woven into the platform’s future vision, making it a bridge between social media and finance. In a 2024 podcast, investor Chamath Palihapitiya revealed how SpaceX leverages stablecoins for Starlink payments in developing regions, sidestepping clunky bank wires by converting directly— a clever hack that underscores crypto’s real-world utility, backed by efficiency data showing faster, cheaper transactions.
Today, on August 10, 2025, SpaceX’s Bitcoin holdings are estimated at 6,977 BTC, clocking in at about $815 million with current prices hovering around $117,000 per Bitcoin. This quietly ranks it among top corporate holders, a testament to Musk’s long-game strategy. Recent Google searches spike with queries like “What is SpaceX’s current Bitcoin value?” and “How does Elon Musk influence crypto markets?”, while Twitter buzzes with discussions on Musk’s latest post teasing “crypto innovations for space travel.” Just last week, on August 3, 2025, Musk tweeted about Bitcoin’s role in “interplanetary economies,” sparking over 500,000 engagements and fueling speculation of deeper integrations. Official updates from SpaceX confirm ongoing stablecoin use, aligning with Palihapitiya’s insights and recent blockchain reports showing a 25% uptick in stablecoin transactions for satellite services.
In this evolving landscape, platforms like WEEX exchange stand out for their seamless handling of such assets. As a reliable crypto trading hub, WEEX offers low-fee Bitcoin transfers and robust tools for consolidating holdings, much like what SpaceX might appreciate for efficient management. Its user-friendly interface and strong security features make it a go-to for businesses diversifying into digital currencies, enhancing overall brand trust in volatile times.
Think about the baby boomer generation, with their $79 trillion in wealth, finally dipping toes into Bitcoin—it’s like grandparents discovering smartphones, bringing fresh stability to the market. Recent analyses, including a new Bitcoin report predicting an “explosive phase” toward $140,000, support this with on-chain metrics showing increased adoption, contrasting the crypto winters of the past and highlighting strengths through data-driven growth.
FAQ
Why did SpaceX move its Bitcoin holdings after three years?
The transfer appears to be a strategic consolidation for easier management and lower future costs, as funds were shifted from multiple older addresses to one efficient one. While no official reason was given, it aligns with broader asset optimization amid market and political shifts.
How does this affect SpaceX’s relationship with the U.S. government?
Rising tensions, including contract reviews and diversified bidding for projects like Golden Dome, suggest potential challenges. However, critical contracts remain secure, emphasizing SpaceX’s key role while prompting the company to adapt, much like its Bitcoin strategy.
What is Elon Musk’s current stance on cryptocurrency?
Musk continues to champion crypto through tweets, X integrations, and practical uses like stablecoins for Starlink. His influence drives market movements, with recent posts hinting at futuristic applications, backed by holdings that position his companies as major players in the space.
You may also like

1 billion DOTs were minted out of thin air, but the hacker only made 230,000 dollars

After the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, when will the war end?

Before using Musk's "Western WeChat" X Chat, you need to understand these three questions
The X Chat will be available for download on the App Store this Friday. The media has already covered the feature list, including self-destructing messages, screenshot prevention, 481-person group chats, Grok integration, and registration without a phone number, positioning it as the "Western WeChat." However, there are three questions that have hardly been addressed in any reports.
There is a sentence on X's official help page that is still hanging there: "If malicious insiders or X itself cause encrypted conversations to be exposed through legal processes, both the sender and receiver will be completely unaware."
No. The difference lies in where the keys are stored.
In Signal's end-to-end encryption, the keys never leave your device. X, the court, or any external party does not hold your keys. Signal's servers have nothing to decrypt your messages; even if they were subpoenaed, they could only provide registration timestamps and last connection times, as evidenced by past subpoena records.
X Chat uses the Juicebox protocol. This solution divides the key into three parts, each stored on three servers operated by X. When recovering the key with a PIN code, the system retrieves these three shards from X's servers and recombines them. No matter how complex the PIN code is, X is the actual custodian of the key, not the user.
This is the technical background of the "help page sentence": because the key is on X's servers, X has the ability to respond to legal processes without the user's knowledge. Signal does not have this capability, not because of policy, but because it simply does not have the key.
The following illustration compares the security mechanisms of Signal, WhatsApp, Telegram, and X Chat along six dimensions. X Chat is the only one of the four where the platform holds the key and the only one without Forward Secrecy.
The significance of Forward Secrecy is that even if a key is compromised at a certain point in time, historical messages cannot be decrypted because each message has a unique key. Signal's Double Ratchet protocol automatically updates the key after each message, a mechanism lacking in X Chat.
After analyzing the X Chat architecture in June 2025, Johns Hopkins University cryptology professor Matthew Green commented, "If we judge XChat as an end-to-end encryption scheme, this seems like a pretty game-over type of vulnerability." He later added, "I would not trust this any more than I trust current unencrypted DMs."
From a September 2025 TechCrunch report to being live in April 2026, this architecture saw no changes.
In a February 9, 2026 tweet, Musk pledged to undergo rigorous security tests of X Chat before its launch on X Chat and to open source all the code.
As of the April 17 launch date, no independent third-party audit has been completed, there is no official code repository on GitHub, the App Store's privacy label reveals X Chat collects five or more categories of data including location, contact info, and search history, directly contradicting the marketing claim of "No Ads, No Trackers."
Not continuous monitoring, but a clear access point.
For every message on X Chat, users can long-press and select "Ask Grok." When this button is clicked, the message is delivered to Grok in plaintext, transitioning from encrypted to unencrypted at this stage.
This design is not a vulnerability but a feature. However, X Chat's privacy policy does not state whether this plaintext data will be used for Grok's model training or if Grok will store this conversation content. By actively clicking "Ask Grok," users are voluntarily removing the encryption protection of that message.
There is also a structural issue: How quickly will this button shift from an "optional feature" to a "default habit"? The higher the quality of Grok's replies, the more frequently users will rely on it, leading to an increase in the proportion of messages flowing out of encryption protection. The actual encryption strength of X Chat, in the long run, depends not only on the design of the Juicebox protocol but also on the frequency of user clicks on "Ask Grok."
X Chat's initial release only supports iOS, with the Android version simply stating "coming soon" without a timeline.
In the global smartphone market, Android holds about 73%, while iOS holds about 27% (IDC/Statista, 2025). Of WhatsApp's 3.14 billion monthly active users, 73% are on Android (according to Demand Sage). In India, WhatsApp covers 854 million users, with over 95% Android penetration. In Brazil, there are 148 million users, with 81% on Android, and in Indonesia, there are 112 million users, with 87% on Android.
WhatsApp's dominance in the global communication market is built on Android. Signal, with a monthly active user base of around 85 million, also relies mainly on privacy-conscious users in Android-dominant countries.
X Chat circumvented this battlefield, with two possible interpretations. One is technical debt; X Chat is built with Rust, and achieving cross-platform support is not easy, so prioritizing iOS may be an engineering constraint. The other is a strategic choice; with iOS holding a market share of nearly 55% in the U.S., X's core user base being in the U.S., prioritizing iOS means focusing on their core user base rather than engaging in direct competition with Android-dominated emerging markets and WhatsApp.
These two interpretations are not mutually exclusive, leading to the same result: X Chat's debut saw it willingly forfeit 73% of the global smartphone user base.
This matter has been described by some: X Chat, along with X Money and Grok, forms a trifecta creating a closed-loop data system parallel to the existing infrastructure, similar in concept to the WeChat ecosystem. This assessment is not new, but with X Chat's launch, it's worth revisiting the schematic.
X Chat generates communication metadata, including information on who is talking to whom, for how long, and how frequently. This data flows into X's identity system. Part of the message content goes through the Ask Grok feature and enters Grok's processing chain. Financial transactions are handled by X Money: external public testing was completed in March, opening to the public in April, enabling fiat peer-to-peer transfers via Visa Direct. A senior Fireblocks executive confirmed plans for cryptocurrency payments to go live by the end of the year, holding money transmitter licenses in over 40 U.S. states currently.
Every WeChat feature operates within China's regulatory framework. Musk's system operates within Western regulatory frameworks, but he also serves as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). This is not a WeChat replica; it is a reenactment of the same logic under different political conditions.
The difference is that WeChat has never explicitly claimed to be "end-to-end encrypted" on its main interface, whereas X Chat does. "End-to-end encryption" in user perception means that no one, not even the platform, can see your messages. X Chat's architectural design does not meet this user expectation, but it uses this term.
X Chat consolidates the three data lines of "who this person is, who they are talking to, and where their money comes from and goes to" in one company's hands.
The help page sentence has never been just technical instructions.

Parse Noise's newly launched Beta version, how to "on-chain" this heat?

Is Lobster a Thing of the Past? Unpacking the Hermes Agent Tools that Supercharge Your Throughput to 100x

Declare War on AI? The Doomsday Narrative Behind Ultraman's Residence in Flames

Crypto VCs Are Dead? The Market Extinction Cycle Has Begun

Claude's Journey to Foolishness in Diagrams: The Cost of Thriftiness, or How API Bill Increased 100-Fold

Edge Land Regress: A Rehash Around Maritime Power, Energy, and the Dollar

Arthur Hayes Latest Interview: How Should Retail Investors Navigate the Iran Conflict?

Just now, Sam Altman was attacked again, this time by gunfire

Straits Blockade, Stablecoin Recap | Rewire News Morning Edition

From High Expectations to Controversial Turnaround, Genius Airdrop Triggers Community Backlash

The Xiaomi electric vehicle factory in Beijing's Daxing district has become the new Jerusalem for the American elite

Lean Harness, Fat Skill: The Real Source of 100x AI Productivity

Ultraman is not afraid of his mansion being attacked; he has a fortress.

US-Iran Negotiations Collapse, Bitcoin Faces Battle to Defend $70,000 Level

Reflections and Confusions of a Crypto VC
1 billion DOTs were minted out of thin air, but the hacker only made 230,000 dollars
After the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, when will the war end?
Before using Musk's "Western WeChat" X Chat, you need to understand these three questions
The X Chat will be available for download on the App Store this Friday. The media has already covered the feature list, including self-destructing messages, screenshot prevention, 481-person group chats, Grok integration, and registration without a phone number, positioning it as the "Western WeChat." However, there are three questions that have hardly been addressed in any reports.
There is a sentence on X's official help page that is still hanging there: "If malicious insiders or X itself cause encrypted conversations to be exposed through legal processes, both the sender and receiver will be completely unaware."
No. The difference lies in where the keys are stored.
In Signal's end-to-end encryption, the keys never leave your device. X, the court, or any external party does not hold your keys. Signal's servers have nothing to decrypt your messages; even if they were subpoenaed, they could only provide registration timestamps and last connection times, as evidenced by past subpoena records.
X Chat uses the Juicebox protocol. This solution divides the key into three parts, each stored on three servers operated by X. When recovering the key with a PIN code, the system retrieves these three shards from X's servers and recombines them. No matter how complex the PIN code is, X is the actual custodian of the key, not the user.
This is the technical background of the "help page sentence": because the key is on X's servers, X has the ability to respond to legal processes without the user's knowledge. Signal does not have this capability, not because of policy, but because it simply does not have the key.
The following illustration compares the security mechanisms of Signal, WhatsApp, Telegram, and X Chat along six dimensions. X Chat is the only one of the four where the platform holds the key and the only one without Forward Secrecy.
The significance of Forward Secrecy is that even if a key is compromised at a certain point in time, historical messages cannot be decrypted because each message has a unique key. Signal's Double Ratchet protocol automatically updates the key after each message, a mechanism lacking in X Chat.
After analyzing the X Chat architecture in June 2025, Johns Hopkins University cryptology professor Matthew Green commented, "If we judge XChat as an end-to-end encryption scheme, this seems like a pretty game-over type of vulnerability." He later added, "I would not trust this any more than I trust current unencrypted DMs."
From a September 2025 TechCrunch report to being live in April 2026, this architecture saw no changes.
In a February 9, 2026 tweet, Musk pledged to undergo rigorous security tests of X Chat before its launch on X Chat and to open source all the code.
As of the April 17 launch date, no independent third-party audit has been completed, there is no official code repository on GitHub, the App Store's privacy label reveals X Chat collects five or more categories of data including location, contact info, and search history, directly contradicting the marketing claim of "No Ads, No Trackers."
Not continuous monitoring, but a clear access point.
For every message on X Chat, users can long-press and select "Ask Grok." When this button is clicked, the message is delivered to Grok in plaintext, transitioning from encrypted to unencrypted at this stage.
This design is not a vulnerability but a feature. However, X Chat's privacy policy does not state whether this plaintext data will be used for Grok's model training or if Grok will store this conversation content. By actively clicking "Ask Grok," users are voluntarily removing the encryption protection of that message.
There is also a structural issue: How quickly will this button shift from an "optional feature" to a "default habit"? The higher the quality of Grok's replies, the more frequently users will rely on it, leading to an increase in the proportion of messages flowing out of encryption protection. The actual encryption strength of X Chat, in the long run, depends not only on the design of the Juicebox protocol but also on the frequency of user clicks on "Ask Grok."
X Chat's initial release only supports iOS, with the Android version simply stating "coming soon" without a timeline.
In the global smartphone market, Android holds about 73%, while iOS holds about 27% (IDC/Statista, 2025). Of WhatsApp's 3.14 billion monthly active users, 73% are on Android (according to Demand Sage). In India, WhatsApp covers 854 million users, with over 95% Android penetration. In Brazil, there are 148 million users, with 81% on Android, and in Indonesia, there are 112 million users, with 87% on Android.
WhatsApp's dominance in the global communication market is built on Android. Signal, with a monthly active user base of around 85 million, also relies mainly on privacy-conscious users in Android-dominant countries.
X Chat circumvented this battlefield, with two possible interpretations. One is technical debt; X Chat is built with Rust, and achieving cross-platform support is not easy, so prioritizing iOS may be an engineering constraint. The other is a strategic choice; with iOS holding a market share of nearly 55% in the U.S., X's core user base being in the U.S., prioritizing iOS means focusing on their core user base rather than engaging in direct competition with Android-dominated emerging markets and WhatsApp.
These two interpretations are not mutually exclusive, leading to the same result: X Chat's debut saw it willingly forfeit 73% of the global smartphone user base.
This matter has been described by some: X Chat, along with X Money and Grok, forms a trifecta creating a closed-loop data system parallel to the existing infrastructure, similar in concept to the WeChat ecosystem. This assessment is not new, but with X Chat's launch, it's worth revisiting the schematic.
X Chat generates communication metadata, including information on who is talking to whom, for how long, and how frequently. This data flows into X's identity system. Part of the message content goes through the Ask Grok feature and enters Grok's processing chain. Financial transactions are handled by X Money: external public testing was completed in March, opening to the public in April, enabling fiat peer-to-peer transfers via Visa Direct. A senior Fireblocks executive confirmed plans for cryptocurrency payments to go live by the end of the year, holding money transmitter licenses in over 40 U.S. states currently.
Every WeChat feature operates within China's regulatory framework. Musk's system operates within Western regulatory frameworks, but he also serves as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). This is not a WeChat replica; it is a reenactment of the same logic under different political conditions.
The difference is that WeChat has never explicitly claimed to be "end-to-end encrypted" on its main interface, whereas X Chat does. "End-to-end encryption" in user perception means that no one, not even the platform, can see your messages. X Chat's architectural design does not meet this user expectation, but it uses this term.
X Chat consolidates the three data lines of "who this person is, who they are talking to, and where their money comes from and goes to" in one company's hands.
The help page sentence has never been just technical instructions.
