Investing.com-- Shares of Chinese app operator Meitu Inc (HK: 1357 ) jumped on Thursday after the company sold its entire cryptocurrency holdings, worth $180 million, to capitalize on the recent rally in digital assets.

The company disclosed that it sold 31,000 units of Ethereum and 940 units of Bitcoin , purchased in 2021. This transaction yielded substantial gains of about $80 million, Meitu announced on Wednesday.

Following the announcement, Meitu’s Hong Kong listed stock climbed as much as 4% to HK$3.12 on Thursday.

The sale was announced just ahead of bitcoin’s milestone surge past $100,000 on Thursday.  Bitcoin is trading up around 140% so far in 2024, with a bulk of its gains coming in November after Donald Trump’s presidential election victory.

Meitu is one of the few Hong Kong-listed firms to openly disclose its cryptocurrency investments.

The company's board announced plans to allocate about 80% of the net proceeds from this sale to pay a special dividend, equating to HK$0.109 per share.

With the rest of the proceeds, Meitu aims to invest further in its photo, video and design products business, which has a premium subscription model.