Bitcoin faces difficulties at the $88 000 level while traditional safe-haven assets are rapidly increasing

Currently, Bitcoin is struggling to hold its position just below the $88 000 mark, despite traditional safe-haven assets reaching new highs.

According to CoinGecko, the leading cryptocurrency has fallen by 2.1% over the past 24 hours and is now trading slightly below the $88 000 level. In comparison, gold surged to a record high of $5 602 per ounce on Thursday before slightly correcting.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index (DXY), which tracks the dollar's value against major global currencies, continued its downward trend over the past year and reached a low of 96.38 on Thursday.

Typically, when the dollar weakens, prices for risk assets and safe havens rise. However, the lack of momentum in Bitcoin in 2026, after a prolonged decline in the last quarter of the previous year, has puzzled investors.

“Recent sluggishness in Bitcoin shows that the market is paying more attention to broad economic trends rather than individual stories,” said Venny Tsai, COO of SynFutures, in an interview with Decrypt.

While gold and other commodities attract investments as traditional safe-haven assets, Tsai noted that Bitcoin is currently behaving more like a volatile high-risk asset — similar to speculative stocks — rather than as a hedge against dollar weakness.

Gold vs. Bitcoin Comparison
The divergence in the dynamics of gold and Bitcoin highlights the contrast between gold’s established reputation as an inflation hedge and Bitcoin’s relatively new status as “digital gold.”

During periods of economic uncertainty or policy changes — for example, amid turbulence in the Japanese bond market or Federal Reserve rate checks in New York — large-cap investors, as previously reported by Decrypt, often turn first to the most proven assets.

“Gold, as a mature and trusted asset, sends a clear signal to the market,” explained Ben Caselin, Head of Marketing at South African crypto exchange VALR, in an interview with Decrypt.

Caselin noted that as pressure on national currencies increases and the dollar weakens, both gold and Bitcoin could benefit. He added, “A strong rise in gold prices, followed by profit-taking, often triggers significant growth in Bitcoin.”

Despite recent gold price increases and Bitcoin’s sideways movement, these trends are not necessarily negative for the leading cryptocurrency.

Some analysts believe that the initial capital inflow into gold is a precursor to Bitcoin’s growth, suggesting that large investments in gold often precede a shift of investor attention to digital assets in search of alternatives to traditional fiat currencies.

Market Outlook: Optimism Remains for Cryptocurrencies
Eric Hae, Community Angel Officer and Risk Management Advisor at LBank, believes that Bitcoin is not in a stagnation phase but is instead preparing for significant growth. In his view, as adoption spreads and regulatory transparency increases, Bitcoin will once again strengthen its status as digital gold.

He also noted, “In the short term, investors prefer tangible safe-haven assets amid fiat currency devaluation, but this does not undermine Bitcoin’s long-term prospects.”

Despite the recent pause, most market participants remain optimistic about Bitcoin’s future. On the Myriad prediction platform, owned by Dastan (parent company of Decrypt), users currently estimate the probability of the next major upward move of Bitcoin to $100 000 at 65%, while the probability of a decline back to $69 000 is lower.