3. Bitcoin fell -11.8% in Q1 2025, underperforming gold and US Treasuries
Bitcoin (BTC) rebounded at the start of the year, reaching a slightly new all-time high of $106,182 on January 22, 2025. This came two days after Trump’s inauguration, marking Bitcoin’s year-to-date high, before trending downward, ending the first quarter down -11.8% to $82,514.
In this turbulent and uncertain quarter, gold (+18.0%) emerged as the strongest performing asset class in Q1 2025. Along with Bitcoin, risk assets such as the Nasdaq and S&P 500 also fell, down -10.3% and -4.4% respectively.
The US dollar index (DXY), which is usually negatively correlated with risk assets, fell -4.6%, likely due to uncertainty about US tariffs. The Japanese yen (+5.2%) and the euro (+4.5%) strengthened against the dollar, the former at least in part due to further unwinding of yen carry trades following the Bank of Japan's rate hike in January.
