Veteran trader Peter Brandt has acknowledged the possibility of partially selling bitcoin in favor of gold. In his assessment, the precious metal will continue to show more confident dynamics compared to the first cryptocurrency in the medium term.
This signal comes amid a noticeable divergence in the performance of the two assets. In June, bitcoin lost about 20% of its value, while gold fell by 11.7%. Since the beginning of the year, the gap is even more pronounced: bitcoin's gain was only 3.9%, whereas gold added 28%.
Such statistics force a reassessment of the traditional view of bitcoin as "digital gold." Amid current macroeconomic uncertainty and tightening monetary policy by key central banks, investors are increasingly favoring classic safe-haven assets. Gold, with its centuries-old history and recognized liquidity, wins in terms of stability.
Bitcoin, despite institutional adoption and limited supply, continues to show a high correlation with high-risk assets such as tech stocks. This makes it vulnerable during periods of market stress. A sharp 20% drop in a month is clear evidence that BTC's volatility remains double-digit even by crypto market standards.
It is worth noting that Brandt is not the only major player reassessing priorities. A number of hedge funds and family offices have increased their gold allocation in portfolios in recent weeks while simultaneously reducing exposure to cryptocurrencies. However, I would not rush to draw definitive conclusions. Bitcoin historically shows cyclicality: periods of calm are followed by sharp rallies. The current correction may be only temporary before a new growth phase, especially ahead of a possible easing of the Fed's monetary policy.
My expert opinion: The signal from Brandt is an important indicator of professional traders' sentiment, but not a reason for panic. The cryptocurrency market is young and has enormous potential. Gold and bitcoin are different instruments with different risk profiles. Diversification between them remains a sensible strategy, but completely abandoning BTC at current levels would be premature.