Bitcoin Price Is Falling. Why the 'Digital Gold' Is Failing to Keep Up With the Precious Metal. -- Barrons.com

Dow Jones01-23 17:01

By Alex Kozul-Wright

Cryptocurrencies have yo-yoed this week but were down again Friday. Initially, the threat of U.S. tariffs on European countries over Greenland triggered a risk-off move in digital assets earlier in the week. But after Trump pulled back from the brink, they rose.

Now they're falling again. Bitcoin was down 0.4% to $89,471 in early trading Friday. Meanwhile, Ethereum dropped by 2.1% to $2,940.2 and XRP tumbled 2.5% to $1.91.

Elsewhere, gold hit new highs today and is trading a touch below $5,000. The contrast brings into question Bitcoin's "digital gold" moniker.

Over the past week, amid growing tensions between the Trump administration and NATO, Bitcoin has fallen nearly 10% while gold has rallied by 7%.

Gold also outperformed Bitcoin last year, despite the yellow metal being the supposedly less speculative asset.

Looking ahead, investors seem to be favoring the more traditional safe-haven option and that's underpinning gold's near-term appeal over crypto.

Write to Alex Kozul-Wright at alexander.kozul-wright@barrons.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 23, 2026 04:01 ET (09:01 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

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Initially, the threat of U.S. tariffs on European countries over Greenland triggered a risk-off move in digital assets earlier in the week. But after Trump pulled back from the brink, they rose. \n\n\n  Now they're falling again. Bitcoin was down 0.4% to $89,471 in early trading Friday. Meanwhile, Ethereum dropped by 2.1% to $2,940.2 and XRP tumbled 2.5% to $1.91. \n\n\n  Elsewhere, gold hit new highs today and is trading a touch below $5,000. 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