(Yicai) Dec. 5 -- Meitu’s shares climbed after the Chinese photo-editing software provider sold all of its cryptocurrency assets, cashing out nearly USD180 million, following the surge in the price of Bitcoin.

Meitu [HKG: 1357] closed up 6.3 percent at HKD3.04 (39 US cents) a share in Hong Kong today. The stock is still down about 16 percent since the end of last year.

Meitu sold cryptocurrency assets twice yesterday and in November, making a total of USD80 million on Bitcoin and USD100 million on Ether, the Xiamen-based company said yesterday evening, adding that it no longer owns either.

Meitu launched its digital currency investment program in 2021 when it bought 31,000 units of Ether and 940 Bitcoins for USD50.5 million and USD49.5 million, respectively. As a result, Meitu has netted about USD80 million from the investment.

The firm said 80 percent of the proceeds will be used for a special cash dividend of HKD0.109 (1 US cent) per share, and the rest will be used as working capital to focus on the development of its subscription-based imaging and design products.

Bitcoin topped USD100,000 for the first time in its history this morning, having climbed more than 40 percent over the past month. 

The next US administration expected to look favorably on digital currencies, according to Hu Jie, a finance professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. The US Federal Reserve has also embarked on a cycle of interest rate cuts, which has boosted the price of Bitcoin, he noted.

Meitu’s earnings has grown steadily in the past two years, with the rollout of features based on artificial intelligence proving a hit with users. In the first half of this year, net profit jumped 33 percent to CNY303 million (USD41.7 million) from a yea ago, while revenue climbed 29 percent to CNY1.6 billion.

Editor: Tom Litting