Bitcoin ETFs Poised to Outshine Gold Counterparts

Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas predicts that Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) will triple their gold counterparts in assets. Speaking to Bitcoin Magazine TV, Balchunas noted that while bitcoin's price is currently volatile, things will change in the future. The analyst compared bitcoin to gold as a teenager, with gold being 5,000 years old and mentioned 450 times in the Bible.

According to Balchunas, younger generations could be drawn to Bitcoin as they rebel against government deficits and inflation by voting for socialist politicians. However, he believes that Bitcoin might be a better bet because it offers censorship resistance, which investors seem to be less focused on right now.

The so-called debasement trade was hot last year and is becoming popular again in 2026 as investors buy non-yielding assets like gold and bitcoin while the dollar becomes weaker. Balchunas added that as bitcoin's price becomes less volatile, big institutions will be more interested in buying the asset as a store of value.

The Bitcoin ETFs debuted in 2024 after a decade of denials from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and have had the most successful launch in history, currently managing nearly $100 billion in assets, according to Coinglass data.