Economist Peter Schiff took note of Bitcoin’s (CRYPTO: BTC) underperformance compared to stocks and gold, warning that the cryptocurrency’s bubble is “running out of air.”
Schiff Says Hype Not Translating Into Gains
In an X post, Schiff used Bitcoin’s historic first climb to $100,000 in December 2024 as the reference point and highlighted the higher returns of gold, the Nasdaq Composite, and the VanEck Gold Miners ETF (NYSE:GDX) since then.
Schiff said that despite the hype around a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and aggressive corporate buying, Bitcoin was up only 10%. In contrast, he pointed out that the NASDAQ has risen by 12%, gold has surged by 28.5% and the gold ETF has skyrocketed by 80% in the same period.
“This bubble is running out of air,” the Bitcoin critic said.
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The Factors Behind The Lag
Bitcoin, often marketed as a safe-haven investment by its advocates, has behaved more like a risk-on asset this year, influenced by President Donald Trump’s tariff policies and Federal Reserve rate cuts. The apex cryptocurrency tumbled to $75,000 after the so-called “Libration Day.”
Its growth has also been hampered by cryptocurrency-specific causes, such as a whale dumping 24,000 BTC, worth more than $2.7 billion, earlier this month.
Gold, on the other hand, appears to have maintained its inflation hedge tag, rising as stocks and cryptocurrencies fell. Spot gold has risen over 27% year to date, while Bitcoin has increased by 18.81%.
Bitcoin Outperformed On A Yearly Timeframe
Schiff has long been accused of cherry-picking time frames as per his convenience to downplay Bitcoin’s returns while hyping investments he likes, such as gold. Earlier this month, he made a similar comparison, fixing November-end as the reference point.
However, if the assets are compared over a year, Bitcoin easily outperforms with a 76% return.
| Cryptocurrency | Price (Recorded on Aug. 27, 2024) | Price (Recorded at 10:44 p.m. ET) | Gains +/- |
| Bitcoin | $59,507.92 | $111,360.43 | +76.87% |
| Nasdaq Composite | 17,754.82 | 21,544.27 | +21.54% |
| Spot Gold | $2502.24 | $3,383.41 | +35.21% |
| VanEck Gold Miners ETF | $39.22 | $61.60 | +57.02% |
Schiff’s Doom Predictions
Schiff’s skepticism towards Bitcoin is not new. Earlier this week, he said Bitcoin could plummet to $75,000, advising investors to “sell now, buy back lower.”
The gold bug has a long history of declaring Bitcoin “dead,” and he once said that the leading cryptocurrency would never hit $100,000. Schiff admitted he was wrong about that prediction.
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Photo Courtesy: Yalcin Sonat On Shutterstock.com
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
