Cryptocurrencies play almost no role in the staid world of corporate treasury, where protecting a company’s financial liquidity and cash reserves are key. Their massive volatility has ruled them out.

That did not stop Elon Musk, chief executive of Tesla, from putting $1.5bn of his company’s spare cash into bitcoin last month. The company’s shares edged up more than 1 per cent on news of the bet on Monday, while the price of bitcoin staged a strong rally. But to experts in corporate treasury management, the move makes almost no sense.

“Corporations invest their cash in very high quality, short-term fixed income securities, and are willing to accept a relatively low rate of return,” said Jerry Klein, a managing director at Treasury Partners, an investment management firm in New York. “I don’t think there is a case to be made for investing corporate cash in a risky asset like bitcoin, where they could experience significant declines.”