Bitcoin rose on Wednesday, underscoring its growing resilience to unrest in the Middle East, while gold, a traditional safe haven, lagged.
The leading cryptocurrency by market capitalization rose to $71,023 during European hours, up more than 6% on a 24-hour basis, according to CoinDesk data. Other majors such as ether (ETH), XRP (XRP) and solana (SOL) followed bitcoin’s lead, rising 4% to 6% respectively.
The CoinDesk 20 index, a broader market gauge, rose more than 5% to 2,025 points.
“Bitcoin may now exhibit some defensive qualities in times of crisis, but gold’s retreat highlights that even classic safe havens are not immune to market dynamics, positioning Bitcoin as a more flexible but still high-beta alternative,” Tagus Capital said in its daily newsletter.
BTC’s latest move to multi-week highs follows even as the crisis has intensified, with Iran blocking oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz and raising the specter of energy price inflation around the world. Since the conflict between Israel, the US and Iran erupted on Saturday, bitcoin has proved surprisingly resilient, with a downside limit around $65,000.
Meanwhile, gold, a traditional safe haven, peaked above $5,400 an ounce on Monday and has since fallen to $5,160. Asian stock indexes, led by South Korea’s Kospi index, have softened sharply as oil import costs rise.
