Bitcoin sold to Cash App users rises to nearly $2.4B in Q2
Cash App’s $44 million of bitcoin gross profit during the three months down slightly from prior quarter, but up 7% year over year
Block co-founder Jack Dorsey | Frederic Legrand – COMEO/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks
Block’s Cash App saw the value of its bitcoin sales increase more than $200 million quarter over quarter.
The total sale amount of bitcoin sold to customers of the mobile payment service during the second quarter of 2023 was $2.39 billion — a year-over-year jump of 34%.
Cash App generated $44 million of bitcoin gross profit during the three months — a figure that factors in costs the company incurred to purchase the asset and make it available for customers. Cash App’s total gross profit was $968 million during the second quarter.
The levels of bitcoin (BTC) sold to Cash App customers and bitcoin gross profit were up from $2.16 billion and down from $50 million, respectively, during Q1.
Block, formerly known as Square, launched bitcoin trading on Cash App in 2018. It invested $50 million in bitcoin during the final quarter of 2020 and an additional $170 million in the crypto asset during the first three months of 2021.
Block did not recognize a bitcoin impairment loss during this year’s second quarter, the company said Thursday — a requirement if the fair value of BTC decreases below the carrying value during a specific period.
The fair value of the company’s bitcoin investment was $245 million, as of June 30 — $142 million greater than the carrying value of the investment after cumulative impairment charges, as Block noted in its latest shareholder letter.
Crypto efforts in Q2
The second quarter was an eventful one for Block in terms of crypto-related offerings.
Block’s self-custody bitcoin wallet, called Bitkey, entered its public beta stage in June and is slated for a “wider public launch later this year.”
Via a partnership with Coinbase, the Bitkey wallet is set to allow users to buy bitcoin on the crypto exchange and transfer it to Bitkey through Coinbase Pay across six continents. Cash App in the US is also set to enable BitKey customers to transfer and buy BTC on its platform.
“That will be a global-first product,” Block CEO Jack Dorsey said during the company’s earnings call on Thursday. “We’ll be launching in the most countries we’ve ever launched in to start.”
Block also revealed in April that it would be creating its own custom silicon for mining hardware — adding that it made a deal with Intel for bitcoin mining ASICs. Block said at the time it plans to make its bitcoin mining technology open-source.
Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:
- Blockworks Daily: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.
- Empire: Start your morning with the top news and analysis to inform your day in crypto.
- Forward Guidance: Reporting and analysis on the growing intersection of crypto and macroeconomics, policy and finance.
- 0xResearch: Alpha directly in your inbox. Market highlights, data, degen trade ideas, governance updates, token performance and more.
- Lightspeed: Built for Solana investors, developers and community members. The latest from one of crypto’s hottest networks.
- The Drop: For crypto collectors and traders, covering apps, games, memes and more.
