The relationship between bitcoin and gold has been strengthening in the past few weeks, buttressing claims by bitcoin supporters that the crypto token is also a safe-haven asset. Meanwhile, its correlation with US stocks has significantly diminished amid a banking crisis, particularly in the past week.
Bitcoin Decoupling from Stocks
Bitcoin’s correlation to gold has been on an upward trajectory in recent weeks, branching away from equity prices as the ongoing banking turmoil weighs on the stock market. Bitcoin’s relationship with stocks started weakening around the SVB collapse, which triggered the current banking rout, whereas the cryptocurrency’s correlation with gold increased somewhat earlier.
The flip in relationships supports claims by bitcoin proponents praising the cryptocurrency for offering the same safe-haven benefits as bullion. Their arguments have become unconvincing in recent years as bitcoin’s correlation with stocks inked new all-time highs.
The stock market, struggling over the past year due to record-high inflation and aggressive interest rate hikes, has come under more pressure in the past week after the US regulators closed down the SVB, marking the second biggest banking failure since 2008. Bank stocks were particularly damaged, falling to multi-year lows as investors jumped ship.
Banking Crisis and Core CPI Jump in Europe Fuel Fresh Bitcoin Rally
However, the recent events have fueled a new rally in Bitcoin, which breached the $26,000 threshold twice this week. And with that rally, the cryptocurrency’s tendency to move alongside US stocks has been reduced, while its relationship with the yellow metal gained strength.
The crypto rally received an additional boost following fresh consumer price index (CPI) data in Europe, which showed that core inflation in the eurozone rose from 5.3% in January to 5.6% in February. The world’s number one cryptocurrency climbed more than 6.5% in the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, gold prices have also been on the rise. Spot gold rose 1.2% to $1,945 per ounce as investors turned to safe-haven assets amid the unexpected banking turmoil. While the near-term outlook for gold looks bullish, the bullion might come under pressure if the Federal Reserve decides to deliver an aggressive rate hike next week. However, most believe the central bank will opt for another 25 basis points (bps) increase.
This article originally appeared on The Tokenist
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