TLDR:
- Bitcoin-gold correlation hits its highest level since 2020, per Bitwise Asset Management data.
- Bitcoin surged 22.4% weekly after Treasury Secretary Bessent’s bond market intervention in August.
- Bitcoin’s correlation with the Nasdaq-100 dropped to a one-year low, weakening its risk-asset label.
- Gold’s $30 trillion market could reprice bitcoin if the correlation trend with debasement hedging holds.
Bitcoin’s correlation with gold just hit a six-year high, according to new research from Bitwise Asset Management. The 90-day rolling correlation between the two assets has climbed to its strongest level since 2020, when pandemic-era stimulus reshaped global markets.
Bitwise says the shift signals a change in how investors view bitcoin, moving it closer to gold’s traditional role as a store of value during periods of macro stress.
Bitcoin’s Correlation With Gold Reaches Six-Year Peak
Bitwise tracked the relationship using Bloomberg data spanning from April 2015 through August 2026. The current reading matches levels last seen during the Covid-19 stimulus era. That earlier period also involved heavy government intervention in financial markets.
August marked a turning point for this correlation. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stepped into the bond market after yields on 10- and 30-year Treasuries climbed. The move stirred concerns about financial repression and yield curve control.
Bitcoin posted its largest weekly gain since March 2024 following the intervention, rising 22.4%. Gold gained roughly 5% over the same period while equities fell. Bitwise says both assets moved together in a way that stood out statistically.
What’s Driving the Bitcoin-Gold Relationship
Bitwise’s official account shared the findings, noting that when macro conditions dominate headlines, investors tend to stop choosing between gold and bitcoin. Instead, many allocators are buying both assets at once.
The firm’s Europe research director, André Dragosch, authored the analysis. He pointed to bitcoin’s declining correlation with the Nasdaq-100, which has dropped to a one-year low. That trend weakens the argument that bitcoin simply tracks tech stock sentiment.
Bitcoin also remains negatively correlated with the U.S. Dollar Index. Bitwise explains that dollar weakness tends to align with bitcoin strength, a pattern gold has exhibited for decades during currency pressure.
Why the Six-Year High Matters for Investors
Bitwise cautions that bitcoin and gold remain different assets despite the recent convergence. Gold has served as a store of value for thousands of years, while bitcoin was created less than two decades ago.
Still, the firm argues that rising correlation during stressful macro periods carries weight. Gold’s market is valued near $30 trillion, built by central banks and institutional allocators over generations.
If bitcoin continues moving toward this category, Bitwise suggests it could eventually be priced against a much larger capital base. That would mark a shift from its historical pricing as a venture-style risk asset toward something closer to a macro hedge.
