Gold is a ‘Bad Feeling’ asset; Bitcoin is a ‘Good Feeling’ asset

THESE are troubled times, the sort that gold and Bitcoin have been training hard for their entire existence.

Gold has been doing what it said it would on the tin, becoming an asset of refuge in a time of de-dollarisation fears and geopolitical tension. Even after taking into account its recent tumble, the commodity has outperformed almost every stock market over the last year.

Bitcoin, on the other hand, has not behaved like “digital gold” or become a popular alternative now that confidence in the US dollar, its fiat currency arch-nemesis, is at a low ebb. Instead, it has lost a third of its value from its peak last October, down some 20 per cent over the last 12 months.