Elon Musk representatives were reportedly spotted at bitcoin titan Michael Saylor's conference just days before the company's $1.5 billion purchase became public (TSLA, MSTR)

<p><img src="https://static1.businessinsider.com/image/60229f30cca90200129b72d6-2400/5fa27f2569331a0011bc72ed.jpeg" border="0" alt="Elon Musk" data-mce-source="Win McNamee/Getty Images"></p><p></p><bi-shortcode id="summary-shortcode" data-type="summary-shortcode" class="mceNonEditable" contenteditable="false">Summary List Placement</bi-shortcode><p>Representatives for Elon Musk' SpaceX were reportedly spotted at bitcoin titan Michael Saylor's conference just days before Tesla announced a $1.5 billion investment in the cryptocurrency.</p><p>Michael Saylora noted Bitcoin bull and CEO of business intelligence firm MicroStrategyheld a conference called "Bitcoin for Corporations" on February 3 and 4. The conference was meant to help corporate executives learn about the benefits of adopting Bitcoin in their portfolios.</p><p>Although Saylor's Microstrategy isn't a bitcoin miner itself, the company holds an aggregate total of 71,079 bitcoin, worth an estimated $3.3 billion at today's prices.</p><p>Saylor has long been an evangelist of cryptocurrencies; the CEO even <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-bitcoin-transactions-twitter-inquiry-tesla-balance-sheet-saylor-2020-12">traded comments with Elon Musk on Twitter</a> back in December discussing the possibility of large purchases of digital assets.</p><p><strong><em>Read More:&nbsp;</em></strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bitcoin-bubble-ubs-cryptocurrency-could-become-worthless-volatility-not-currency-2021-2'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>UBS says bitcoin is a bubble and too volatile to diversify a portfolio, unlike gold - here's why the bank says it could end up 'worthless.'</em></a></p><p>Now there is more evidence that&nbsp; Saylor may have played a role in getting Musk to make a big move in bitcoin.</p><p>In a recent <a href="https://twitter.com/cryptomanran/status/1357580170329288705">Tweet</a>, Ran Neuner, former host of CNBC's "Crypto Traders,"&nbsp;said some of the executives attending Saylor's bitcoin event were sent by Elon Musk.</p><p>"I can confirm that Elon Musk had at least three people at the Michael Saylor event, including two from treasury!"</p><p>In a follow-up <a href="https://twitter.com/cryptomanran/status/1357948854000381952">tweet</a>, Neuner broke down the guestlist for the event, noting several key figures from Musk's company SpaceX attended, including Richard Lee, senior director in the corporate treasury, and senior manager Ryan Nagle.</p><p>Just five days after the event, news broke that Tesla invested $1.5 billion in bitcoin. The cryptocurrency's price surged on the news, resulting in a windfall for Tesla, Musk, and Saylor.</p><p><strong><em>Read more:</em></strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/stocks-to-buy-stock-picks-rising-inflation-cogs-goldman-sachs-2021-2'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&nbsp;<em>GOLDMAN SACHS: Buy these 13 stocks poised to benefit from surging commodity costs - including 2 set to soar by more than 40%</em></a></p><p>Institutional investment in bitcoin has been touted as a game changer by crypto bulls, including Saylor, for some time. They believe large inflows of cash will drive up crypto prices and "de-risk" the currencies. In an interview with Bloomberg on Monday, Saylor broke down why he sees value in bitcoin, arguing that it is a gold replacement and safe-haven asset.</p><p>"In an expansionary, monetary environment, you want scarce assets," said Saylor. "The scarcest asset in the world is bitcoin. It's digital gold."</p><p>"Once people start thinking about what they want, which is a non-sovereign, safe-haven store of value, they're going to realize that Bitcoin does the job of gold better, and you're seeing all of the institutional flows move out of gold into Bitcoin," Saylor concluded.</p><p>Based on recent tweets and appearances by corporate treasury executives, it appears Saylor may have been able to convince Musk that his companies should be holding bitcoin.</p><p>Other attendees of the "Bitcoin for Corporations" event included representatives from JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Amazon.</p><p><strong data-stringify-type="bold"><em data-stringify-type="italic">Read More:</em></strong><em data-stringify-type="italic">&nbsp;</em><em data-stringify-type="italic"><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/day-trading-changing-short-selling-investor-carson-block-gamestop-reddit-2021-2'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://www.businessinsider.com/day-trading-changing-short-selling-investor-carson-block-gamestop-reddit-2021-2" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Short-seller Carson Block says the day-trading revolution that hit GameStop and other stocks is changing the playing field for investors like him. Here's how his firm is reinventing itself - and what he's betting against today</a></em><em data-stringify-type="italic">.</em></p><p><a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/currencies/news/elon-musk-spacex-representatives-spotted-michael-saylor-conference-bitcoin-tesla-2021-2-1030061601#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/candy-corn-ingredients-made-of-gelatin-lac-resin-halloween-sugar-syrup-2017-10">What candy corn is actually made of</a></p>
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