Gold, Silver Soar as Bitcoin Struggles to Keep Up
Gold and silver prices hit new all-time highs on Monday, creating a buzz across financial markets. But according to some analysts, this surge in precious metals could be holding back bitcoin and the broader crypto market from making stronger moves.
Gold jumped 2% to reach a record $4,475 per ounce, while silver climbed 1.6% and briefly touched nearly $70 per ounce. These gains are part of a broader rise in risk assets, as the U.S. stock market also moved higher. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 both rose by 0.6%, while the U.S. dollar index slipped by 0.3%.
Bitcoin had a strong start to the day, rising above $90,000 during early trading in Asia and Europe. But by midday in the U.S., it had cooled off slightly, falling back to around $89,000. While still up over the past 24 hours, bitcoin continues to lag behind other major assets in terms of performance.
Other popular cryptocurrencies like ether (ETH), solana (SOL), and XRP also saw gains earlier in the day but have since pulled back from their highs. Despite being in the green, they’re not showing the same momentum as gold and silver.
In the stock market, crypto-related companies that are shifting focus toward AI and high-performance computing are seeing solid gains. A major boost came from Alphabet’s $4.75 billion acquisition of AI infrastructure startup Intersect. The tech giant said this move will help speed up data center expansion and drive energy innovation.
Crypto miner Hut 8 (HUT) led the way with a 17.5% jump in its stock price. Other mining firms like IREN, Cipher Mining (CIFR), and Bitfarms (BITF) also posted strong gains between 5% and 10%.
Meanwhile, companies tied more directly to crypto trading and infrastructure—like Circle (CRCL), Coinbase (COIN), Bullish (BLSH), and Galaxy Digital (GLXY)—were up between 2% and 4%. MicroStrategy (MSTR), known for holding large amounts of bitcoin, saw a smaller gain of just 0.3%.
Analysts at ByteTree, including Charlie Morris and Shehriyar Ali, believe that bitcoin and the broader crypto market may not see big moves until the rally in gold and silver slows down. They note that while bitcoin has outperformed precious metals over the long term, silver’s recent explosive rise has nearly matched bitcoin’s returns over the last eight years.
For now, crypto investors are watching from the sidelines as gold and silver continue to dominate headlines.