Nvidia Reveals Crypto Sales for First Time and Predicts Big Drop

Nvidia Corp. revealed for the first time how much revenue it generated from chip sales to the cryptocurrency market -- and said that figure will be much smaller in the second quarter.

Demand from cryptocurrency miners was stronger-than-expected in the first quarter and translated into revenue of $289 million, Nvidia said Thursday on its earnings conference call. Crypto sales will probably fall by about two-thirds in the current fiscal quarter, the company said.

The first-quarter sales were much higher than one analyst projected. Susquehanna’s Christopher Rolland anticipated crypto sales of about $200 million, according to an estimate before the earnings were released.

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“Crypto miners bought a lot of our GPUs in the quarter and it drove prices up,” Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang said on a conference call. “I think that a lot of gamers weren’t able to buy into the new GeForce as a result.”

Nvidia shares declined as much as 3.8 percent in extended trading after its earnings were announced. Earlier, the stock had closed at a record $260.13 in New York.