Financial markets witnessed a stark divergence this week as precious metals experienced historic volatility while major cryptocurrencies remained relatively stagnant. According to market commentators on X, the market capitalization of gold surged by an astonishing $2.2 trillion in a single trading session. This monumental one-day gain alone eclipsed the entire market cap of Bitcoin, which stood at approximately $1.77 trillion, and was nearly 20 times the total market value of XRP, estimated at around $103 billion.
Analysts were quick to contextualize the staggering figure, noting it is largely a function of gold's immense market scale. Because the gold market is so vast, even modest percentage swings translate into enormous nominal dollar changes, not necessarily indicative of equivalent fresh capital inflows. This contrasts sharply with crypto assets, where smaller capital movements can induce sharp price swings.
The metals rally proved volatile, with silver experiencing a particularly sharp reversal after its initial blistering ascent, wiping out a significant portion of its peak gains within days. Meanwhile, Bitcoin and XRP showed little reaction to the metals' fireworks. Commentators illustrated the disparity with hypothetical math: if XRP had matched silver's percentage gain, its price would be multiples higher; if Bitcoin mirrored gold's surge, it would be far above current levels.
Amid this, Bitcoin's price slid to approximately $78,150, more than 35% below its peak from October 6, 2025. ARK Invest, led by Cathie Wood, reframed the narrative, separating the short-term noise from long-term theses. The firm's research highlighted that gold's market value relative to the US M2 money supply has reached levels not seen since the 1930s and around 1980—a historical extreme that often precedes a major reversal.
ARK emphasized the distinct roles of the two assets. While the historic price correlation between Bitcoin and gold has been low at about 0.14 since early 2020, ARK noted that in the last two major cycles, gold's price gains led significant bull moves in Bitcoin. However, in the current cycle, that anticipated capital rotation from metals into crypto has so far stalled, raising questions about market dynamics. ARK maintains its long-term view of Bitcoin as an adoption-driven asset, separate from gold's role as a hedge against monetary debasement.
