Bitcoin jumps 23% in its strongest weekly gain in over three years as stocks decline
Bitcoin rose about 23% during a week when the S&P 500 fell, gold gained roughly 5% and the U.S. dollar weakened, while long-term Treasury yields fluctuated after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced larger buybacks.
Bitcoin surged roughly 23% over the past week, breaking out of a months-long trading range as the S&P 500 index declined and gold rose about 5%. The U.S. dollar weakened during the same period.
The move coincided with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s decision on Wednesday to double planned buybacks of longer-dated Treasury securities, which initially pushed the 30-year Treasury yield down 9 basis points. Bitcoin jumped 7% and gold gained 4% after the announcement, though the 30-year yield later recovered most of its loss by Friday.
Coinage founder Zack Guzman told Yahoo Finance’s Morning Brief that Bitcoin “has established itself as a bit of a debasement trade,” adding that government actions can channel money into assets such as Bitcoin.
Historical data show only six weeks since 2015 in which Bitcoin rose more than 15% while stocks fell, gold rose and the dollar declined, all accompanied by falling long-term yields. This week was distinct because the 30-year yield rose after its initial drop, a pattern seen in 24 prior weeks with a median Bitcoin gain of about 2%.
During the week, Bitcoin’s 20-day correlation with the S&P 500 fell from roughly 0.43 to near zero, while its correlation with gold rose above 0.5. Over a full year, Bitcoin still tracks more closely with equities than with gold, indicating that the recent performance is an outlier rather than a lasting shift.