Bitcoin Leaves Other Assets Behind in 2020. And 2021?
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Will there be a 2021 Bull Run? Crypto research provider Raider.btc tweeted his sentiment for 2021 with a challenge.
Bitcoin had a very good year in 2020. Messari’s chart shows this clearly.
Imagine not investing in #bitcoin during the 2021 bull run… pic.twitter.com/gphcrSPDYj
— Raider.btc ₿
(@TruthRaiderHQ) December 31, 2020
(@TruthRaiderHQ) So, what happened, and more to the point, what happened to the others? Also, is there much reason to doubt him?
Bottom up: WTI
At the bottom of the pack is West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Crude Oil. WTI lost 22% by year end. That’s pretty good, actually. The chart shows why.
WTI dropping from $63.05 at the beginning of 2020 to its current $48.42 is not much of a story compared to the trip along the way. A perfect storm drove prices negative for a short time. On April 20, maturing June futures in the face of general oversupply and the cliff-fall in demand due to the COVID pandemic spiked prices down to $-37.63. By Wednesday, the price was over $13 and the crisis never reappeared. However, the supply glut still exists.
Gold
Gold rose appreciably in 2020. It rose 28% year-on-year. Moreover, it breached $2,000 for the first time since 1980. The chart shows nothing to give investors a shock.
However, in H2 2020, institutional and enterprise investors began signalling that investments in gold will start moving into crypto. BeInCrypto.com reported on several such statements beginning with MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor’s comments in September. Similar announcements about moves from gold to crypto, especially bitcoin, came from Deutsche Bank, BlackRock, JPMorgan, and Jeffries Financial Group. Even the Norwegian Oil Fund, owned by the Norwegian government, gained exposure to bitcoin through buying a stake in MicroStrategy. Institutions, it seems, are rotating out of gold in a risk-on posture, into crypto.
Missing the Bitcoin tide
Bitcoin did extremely well in 2020, and a rising tide should raise all ships. However, there have been non-performers and outright losers in the crypto world as well. Bitcoin Cash, for example, is not benefiting from the general crypto rise. Internal dissension and hard forks arising because of it keep investors at bay. This is especially true at times when so many other projects look more promising. As a result, Polkadot, one of the darlings of the decentralized finance boom of 2020, recently overtook BCH in terms of market cap.
BTC Warning signals? What warning signals?
So, bitcoin, and most but not all crypto did well in 2020. Is Messari right about 2021? Only time will tell. However, there are people who disagree with his assessment. For example, Raoul Pal, founder of Global Macro Investor and Real Vision Group, tweeted his own opinion on Dec. 30.
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