This is why Bitcoin, gold and silver go down at the same time

Bitcoin (BTC) has been on its toes for the past six weeks, but precious metals gold and silver share that pain. Meanwhile, Wall Street continues its impressive run and that logically raises many questions for investors.

Bitcoin has collapsed by 29 percent since May 11. The price slipped from around 82,000 dollars to 58,000 dollars.

Gold lost 17 percent in the same period. For the most valuable asset in the world, that's a huge blow. 

The precious metal did not have one green week. This is the worst series since the end of 2016. For the first time since last November, the price has plunged below $4,000 per troy ounce (just over 31 grams). 

Silver has always moved more violently than gold, because in addition to being a safe haven, it is also an industrial metal, and you can now see that in a fall of 38 percent. 

All three assets have actually been ahead of the curve all year. Bitcoin has already fallen by 40 percent in 2026, gold has fallen by 29 percent since the peak, and silver is taking the lead with a minus of 54 percent.

For the past two years, Bitcoin, gold and silver have been largely the same bet. And now they're turning back together, too.

That gamble has a name: the debasement trade. The idea is that high government spending and rising public debt are slowly eroding the value of paper money.

As a result, investors are stepping into scarce assets that no government can print. Gold and silver are the oldest version, Bitcoin with its maximum of 21 million coins is the digital variant.

But the three have been under pressure for a long time. There is no longer any prospect of interest rate cuts from the US central bank. The market is even counting on two rate hikes before March 2027.

The expectations for a tighter policy were first highlighted by the Iran war and the higher energy prices that followed. Oil prices are now back to pre-war levels, but new Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh told his first press conference that price stability is a priority of the committee.

“We missed it for five years and we're going to fix that,” he said, referring to the 2 percent inflation target.

Interest rate expectations continue to have an impact on the bond market: government bonds will yield more.

Gold, silver and Bitcoin do not pay interest themselves and therefore they are currently suffering a lot. Whoever benefits from it is the dollar. And that puts further pressure on all other assets, as they become more expensive for buyers outside the United States. 

In theory, the high interest rates are also bad for stocks. Borrowing becomes more expensive for companies, which weighs on their profits. And future earnings are worth less today, which mainly affects expensive growth stocks. 

But the stock market ignores it. The AI story is such a powerful engine that the high interest rates are powerless against it. 

A bright spot for BTC holders is that the digital currency has been outperforming both precious metals since February. Bitcoin has risen more than 30 percent against gold and more than 55 percent against silver. Now the dollar.