This year's market has been quite interesting. Gold has surged all the way up, while Bitcoin has actually shrunk in value. What's really going on here?

Many attribute the rise in gold to geopolitical conflicts and expectations of Fed rate cuts, but the real story is much more complex.

**What are the central banks doing?**

Quietly, central banks around the world have initiated a wave of gold purchases. The data speaks volumes — since the Russia-Ukraine conflict, global central bank gold purchases have jumped from 467 tons annually to around 1,000 tons, a trend that has continued for three years. Emerging market countries are leading the way. Our central bank has been increasing holdings for 13 consecutive months, with Poland and Turkey also ramping up their purchases.

This isn't just simple investment behavior; it's a collective vote — a vote of confidence in the US dollar.

**What about the US side?**

The national debt is approaching $37.5 trillion, with interest payments alone exceeding $1 trillion annually. When a country begins to rely on currency depreciation to dilute its debt, how do other nations respond? They scramble to buy gold.

Gold is the ultimate safe-haven asset. It doesn't depend on any government credit; its physical form is tangible and cannot be printed. And Bitcoin? Although touted as "digital gold," its performance becomes problematic when market liquidity faces pressure and risk assets are being sold off.

**Why hasn't Bitcoin kept pace?**

In essence, Bitcoin remains a risk asset influenced by macro sentiment. When liquidity tightens and investors become conservative, it tends to be hammered down. In contrast, gold appreciates more during chaos — this is its deep-rooted role as the ultimate safe haven accumulated over thousands of years.

The choices made by central banks reveal the underlying issues. They prefer gold over Bitcoin. Behind this is a calm judgment on the nature of assets — one being a tested store of value, the other still searching for its identity.

Seemingly cold data actually reflects deep changes in the global financial system. The divergence between risk assets and safe-haven assets is becoming more pronounced, and behind this divergence is a reevaluation among major powers of the monetary system and ways to store wealth.