Elon Musk. [Source: BBC News]

Tesla, which made waves last year when it revealed a significant investment in Bitcoin, has now sold off most of its holdings of the cryptocurrency.

The electric carmaker said it had offloaded 75% of its Bitcoin, worth about $2bn at the end of 2021.

It is backing away as the value of the cryptocurrency has plunged, falling by more than 50% this year.

Tesla said it bought traditional currency with $936m (£782m) from its Bitcoin sales.

Tesla boss Elon Musk has been among the most high-profile champions of cryptocurrency, with his pronouncements on social media often driving significant trading activity.

Tesla’s $1.5bn investment in Bitcoin, revealed in February 2021, prompted a surge in currency demand. The price of the notoriously volatile cryptocurrency soared last year to almost $70,000 in November before crashing.

One Bitcoin now trades for less than $25,000.

Tesla last year stopped accepting Bitcoin as payment for its cars, citing concerns about the climate impact of energy-intensive Bitcoin mining.

At the time, Mr Musk said on social media that the company would not be selling the Bitcoin it owned.