On April 30th, Caixin News (Editor Xiaoxiang) reported that although gold, which had set new historical highs, once shone brightly in April, when people looked back at the end of the month, it was not difficult to find an asset even more powerful than it: Bitcoin.

Data shows that Bitcoin has risen twice as much as gold so far this month, reigniting the debate over whether this largest cryptocurrency can serve as a safe haven in times of market turbulence, such as the disputes sparked by the US comprehensive tariffs.

On April 2nd, US President Trump announced the decision to impose equivalent tariffs (which he called “Liberation Day”), causing turbulence in the global market. Since the day before the announcement, the Nasdaq Composite Index has fallen by a cumulative 0.2%, and the US dollar index has plummeted by over 4%. As a traditional safe haven asset, gold once soared to a historical high of $3500 per ounce. Although it has since given up some of its gains, it still recorded a rise of about 6.1% so far this month.

But perhaps even more surprising is Bitcoin: the world’s largest cryptocurrency has risen by about 12% since April 1st – and many cryptocurrency enthusiasts believe that it is becoming an alternative hedge tool amid growing concerns about US fiscal policy and institutional stability.

Interestingly, the initial market response to tariffs also led to a simultaneous decline in Bitcoin and risk assets, followed by a sharp drop in the US stock market. However, cryptocurrency soon diverged from other risky assets. With the rise of long-term treasury bond bond yields and investors seeking a safe haven for policy risk escalation, Bitcoin rebounded sharply.

The growing concerns about the independence of the Federal Reserve and the credibility of US economic policies have also led to capital flowing into the Swiss franc, euro, gold, and ultimately further into Bitcoin.

Data shows that since April, investors have injected approximately $2.9 billion into US listed Bitcoin spot ETFs, a significant reversal from the net outflows of $811 million and $3.6 billion recorded in March and February, respectively.

Geoff Kendrick, Global Head of Digital Asset Research at Standard Chartered Bank, stated in a recent report that “strategic asset reallocation away from US assets” is expected to drive the next wave of Bitcoin’s rise.

He believes that Bitcoin has become a tool for hedging financial system risks and emphasizes that its “decentralized nature” may make this hedging “more effective than gold”.

Kendrick stated that as investors face multiple risks ranging from private sector shocks such as the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in 2023 to public sector threats such as government intervention in the Federal Reserve, the defensive nature of Bitcoin is becoming increasingly important.

However, David Lawant, head of research at FalconX, still reminds investors not to overinterpret Bitcoin’s recent divergence from risky assets, and points out that this is only based on a few trading days. He pointed out that “decoupling” means the collapse of correlation, but the 30 day correlation between Bitcoin and major stock indices is still around 0.6, far from reaching a low level.

But Lawant also mentioned that what is currently more noteworthy may be the abnormally low beta value of Bitcoin under recent market pressure (beta value is used to quantify the volatility of individual investment instruments relative to the entire market), indicating that investors have begun to view it as a more mature long-term asset.