‘Bitcoin ETF Performance Pales Next to Gold’: Mike McGlone

Mike McGlone, a Senior Community Strategist at Bloomberg, recently shared his opinion on the performance of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), compared to gold. He questioned the narrative that spot ETFs would fuel unlimited upside for Bitcoin.

Bitcoin ETFs vs. Gold

In an X post, McGlone argued that the launch of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs is not a long-term bullish catalyst. He claimed that the ETFs appear to have capped to the upside for Bitcoin (BTC), rather than fueling endless price appreciation.

He compared the performance of the Bitcoin ETFs to gold, which has outperformed as a traditional safe-haven asset.

McGlone pointed out that Bitcoin has gained about 50% since the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) started trading in January 2024. This gain roughly matched the S&P 500 over the same period.

In contrast, gold surged approximately 135% over the same time frame. McGlone emphasized that the Bitcoin returns have been relatively muted despite the hype around institutional adoption through the spot ETFs.

Inflows into Bitcoin ETFs provided short-term price support by bringing in new institutional and retail money.

However, McGlone sees this as potentially marking the top of a crypto cycle. The funds from ETF-driven buying may have been the climax of broad appreciation, after which enthusiasm waned, and capital has rotated elsewhere.

As a classic nonyielding asset, gold has benefited more from macroeconomic factors. While Bitcoin has behaved more like a risk-on asset, gold has shone as a hedge during uncertainty.

Is Bitcoin rally over?

Amid this Bitcoin versus gold performance discussion, the BTC price is consolidating around $71,251. 

BTC is down approximately 45% from its 2025 peak of above $120,000. However, recent broader market optimism briefly pushed the top coin above $72,000.

On April 7, Bitcoin briefly soared to $72,767, the highest level since March 18. BTC experienced more than 5% gains this month after recording its first green month in five consecutive months of bleeding. 

Following the surge, bulls predicted a rebound to the $80,000 level. Specifically, analyst Fred Krueger believes BTC could reclaim the $80,000 level as soon as this week.

Shortly after this prediction, BTC failed to hold above $72,000, falling to around $71,251, as of this writing. The daily trading volume also plunged by 29.6% to $35.6 billion, indicating reduced investor interest.

For now, Bitcoin is consolidating and awaiting a big update to push it higher.