Bitcoin's Digital Gold Shift Gains Momentum Amid ETF Inflows

The recent rally in Bitcoin has seen it behave more like digital gold than a high-beta stock proxy, according to data from TradingView. Over the week ended August 21, Bitcoin jumped around 23%, while gold gained about 5% and the S&P 500 fell 1.4%. This unusual combination came as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced plans to double the size of Treasury buybacks for longer-dated bonds, briefly pushing the 30-year yield lower.

The bond market later reversed most of that move, but Bitcoin and gold did not follow suit. Historical data show that previous weeks when Bitcoin gained more than 15% while stocks fell were accompanied by falling 30-year Treasury yields. This time, however, the 30-year yield actually rose 1 basis point.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs are validating this rally with combined net inflows of $1.92 billion last week, according to Farside Investors data. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) accounted for around $1.33 billion of those inflows, or nearly 70% of the weekly total.