Gold, silver and Bitcoin

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Gold, silver and Bitcoin

Published: 09 Jan. 2026, 00:05

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Cho Won-kyeong

The author is a professor of economics at Sejong University.

The year 2025 was a revealing one in regard to global asset markets. Gold and Bitcoin, once grouped together as “alternative assets,” have clearly diverged paths. While gold has continued to set record highs, Bitcoin remains the subject of sharply divided views on its trajectory for 2026.

An employee arranges gold products at the Korea Gold Exchange in Jongno District, central Seoul, on Sept. 9, 2025. [YONHAP]

This difference is not simply a result of price movements. It reflects the questions that we must ask about capitalism itself. Gold’s rise is not driven by a narrow return to safe haven preferences. Global liquidity has expanded, fiscal deficits have become structural rather than cyclic and financial sanctions and geopolitical tensions are now part of the everyday landscape. In such an environment, central banks and governments are less concerned with yield than with monetary sovereignty and trust.

Gold stands out because it is not based on anyone’s promise. It cannot be excluded from settlement systems through political decisions or financial sanctions. That is why demand for gold does not easily weaken even as prices rise. It functions more like insurance. Few people cancel an insurance policy simply because the premium has increased.

Silver presents a different profile. It often moves alongside gold but has a distinct identity as an industrial asset. The global push toward energy transition and the expansion of AI infrastructure are structurally increasing demand for silver. At the same time, its price is far more sensitive to the business cycle and shifts in technology outlooks. Silver frequently appears cheap, but that perception can be misleading if its dual nature is misunderstood.

Bitcoin, once described as “digital gold,” currently sits far from the traditional definition of a safe haven asset. In a high interest rate environment, it is largely treated as a risk asset. It does not figure into central bank reserve strategies and is increasingly viewed as sharing the fate of technology stocks rather than that of monetary hedges. For Bitcoin to regain broader strength, the market's underlying focus would need to move away from returns and toward a more fundamental concern: whether the existing monetary system itself can continue to be trusted.

In this sense, the three assets are responding to different signals: Gold reflects anxiety about a dollar-centered monetary order; silver mirrors the direction of industrial transformation; and Bitcoin poses a challenge to the credibility of the current currency system.

Reading these divergent movements together offers a clearer picture of where modern capitalism stands today and what kinds of uncertainties are shaping investor behavior at this moment.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.