Bitcoin experienced sharp declines this week following US President Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs against Greenland and eight EU countries.
Bitcoin (BTC) continued its decline, falling to the $89,000 level, while precious metals rose on Thursday, with gold reaching a new record high of $4,930 per ounce.
According to the data, gold rose again on Thursday, reaching $4,930 per ounce, while silver climbed to $96 per ounce. While precious metals were rising, Bitcoin remained roughly 30% below its all-time high from early October, falling to $89,000.
This contrast between the assets has caught the market’s attention, with analysts clashing over BTC and gold.
At this point, Jim Bianco, head of Bianco Research, argued that Bitcoin’s adoption narrative has lost strength, while Eric Balchunas, senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, maintained that BTC is doing quite well.
In a post on his Bianco X account, he argued that Bitcoin’s strong adoption and bullish narrative may no longer be valid.
Bianco also emphasized that Bitcoin needs a new theme to be bullish, but added that this is not yet clear.
In contrast, Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas stated that Bitcoin’s fundamentals are still strong, highlighting his confidence in BTC.
Balchunas responded by pointing out that Bitcoin is currently in a consolidation phase after rising from the low point of $15,000 during the 2022 crypto winter to its peak of $126,000 last October.
Balchunas responded, “There was a 300% increase in the previous 20 months, what do you want? A 200% annual return without any breaks?”
Balchunas stated that Bitcoin’s poor performance in recent months is likely due to profit-taking from long-term investors.
Bianco argued that in the 14 months since President Trump’s November 2024 election victory, Bitcoin has lost value against almost everything else. He pointed out that while Bitcoin fell by 2.6%, silver rose by 205%, gold by 83%, the Nasdaq by 24%, and the S&P 500 by 17.6%.
Bianco said, “And while we’re waiting for this new theme, everything is moving so fast, while BTC continues to stagnate.”
*This is not investment advice.