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Bitcoin spent much of the past year facing pressure from geopolitical tensions, inflation concerns and weakness following its October 2025 all-time high. Yet fresh comparative data suggests the world’s largest cryptocurrency quietly regained leadership across major asset classes.
Over the last three months, Bitcoin returned roughly 20%, compared with an 8% gain for the S&P 500 and a 6% decline in gold, according to market intelligence platform Santiment. At the time of writing, BTC traded just below $80,000 after recovering from a deeper retracement following its October 2025 all-time high near $126,000.
📊 Bitcoin has been the superior investment over equities and gold over the past 3 months, and by a wide margin:
🪙 Bitcoin: +20%
🏦 S&P 500: +8%
🥇 Gold: -6%📈 Yes, $BTC has had a large retrace since its $126K all-time high last October, crypto’s top cap has rebounded nicely… pic.twitter.com/NTxFesWzYw
— Santiment Intelligence (@SantimentData) May 13, 2026
Bitcoin’s relative strength becomes more notable when viewed against broader market conditions. The S&P 500 recently staged one of its strongest rebounds in years. The Kobeissi Letter reported that the index added $10.2 trillion in market value and climbed 18% from its March lows to fresh highs.
BREAKING: The S&P 500 extends its historic rally into record high territory, now up +18% since its March 30th bottom.
That's +$10.2 TRILLION in market cap added in just 6 weeks. pic.twitter.com/y4PwzsYGPj
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) May 13, 2026
Even against that backdrop, Bitcoin still delivered stronger returns over the three-month period, adding another layer to its recent recovery as equities and traditional assets posted gains of their own.
That comparison matters because equities benefited from AI optimism, liquidity expectations and long-term growth themes. Bitcoin, meanwhile, spent much of the same period navigating regulatory uncertainty around the Clarity Act, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and renewed debate over whether higher US rates could pressure speculative assets.
Santiment also noted that Bitcoin rebounded despite increasingly bearish headlines surrounding crypto markets.
The latest performance data suggests Bitcoin’s rebound wasn’t driven only by enthusiasm around crypto. It happened while competing against both traditional risk assets and assets viewed as defensive stores of value.
Bitcoin’s recent performance has pushed comparisons with gold back into focus.
For years, Bitcoin traded as a high-beta technology proxy, often rising and falling alongside growth stocks. New research from asset manager WisdomTree argues that framework may miss a broader shift underway.
Its Bitcoin in Gold, or BiG, model places Bitcoin’s fair-value ratio against gold at 21.1. The actual ratio stood near 15.6 as of March 31, 2026, implying Bitcoin was trading roughly 26% below model value.
The report argues Bitcoin and gold increasingly compete for similar capital allocation. Both appeal to investors seeking alternatives outside traditional fiat systems, although they respond differently during macro stress.
25/31 – ⚔️ Bitcoin vs gold?
The report rejected the simplistic “Bitcoin OR gold” framing.
Instead:
🪙 Gold = historical monetary anchor
₿ Bitcoin = emerging digital monetary challengerBut importantly:
The IMF opposed BOTH gold-linked and Bitcoin-linked systems.Why?… pic.twitter.com/HYhxJ6cKhv
— In Gold We Trust (@IGWTreport) May 13, 2026
WisdomTree’s model suggests periods of easier liquidity and lower real yields tend to favor Bitcoin. Gold historically performs better during stronger dollar environments and risk-off periods.
The digital gold thesis continues gaining traction, although some investors and macro figures still question whether Bitcoin can match gold’s role as a traditional safe-haven asset.
Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio recently argued that Bitcoin’s transparency, market size and historical correlation with technology stocks reduce its appeal as a reserve asset. Michael Saylor pushed back, stating Bitcoin functions as digital collateral and has delivered stronger risk-adjusted returns than gold since 2020.
Data compiled by Curvo comparing annual returns across Bitcoin, gold and the S&P 500 shows BTC repeatedly producing larger upside cycles. Bitcoin gained roughly 270% in 2020, 147% in 2023 and another 135% in 2024. Gold and equities produced steadier gains but rarely matched Bitcoin’s magnitude.
That doesn’t settle the safe-haven debate.
Bitcoin remains more volatile than gold and still trades well below its prior peak. Recent market pressure tied to inflation concerns and uncertainty around US interest rates pushed BTC below the $80,000 level during periods of broader risk aversion.
At the same time, broader sentiment signals remain uneven. Vantage Markets recently highlighted a sharp disconnect between Wall Street optimism and deteriorating US consumer sentiment while both Bitcoin and the S&P 500 traded near elevated levels.
Bitcoin’s recent outperformance adds another data point to the debate over where the asset belongs in portfolios. Over the last three months, BTC returned 20%, outperforming the S&P 500’s 8% gain while gold declined 6%, according to Santiment.
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