Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart believes spot Bitcoin ETFs will eventually surpass gold ETFs in total assets under management, pointing to Bitcoin’s wider range of investment use cases as the key driver.
More use cases than gold
Speaking on the Coin Stories podcast, Seyffart argued that Bitcoin serves multiple roles simultaneously — digital gold, store of value, portfolio diversifier, and growth asset — while gold only fills one of those functions.
He stated:
“There are just more use cases of why somebody would put a Bitcoin ETF in a portfolio.”
He described Bitcoin as “hot sauce” in a portfolio, saying investors can hold it as a bet on a growth and liquidity trade, or as a hedge against monetary debasement — something gold cannot offer in the same way.
ETF flows tell a mixed story
The numbers show a divergence in recent months.
US-based gold ETFs recorded net outflows of $2.92 billion in March, while US spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted $1.32 billion in net inflows over the same period.
The largest US gold-backed ETF, GLD, saw a $3 billion single-day outflow on March 4 — the largest daily withdrawal in over two years.
Data from the Bank for International Settlements showed retail gold purchases have tripled over the last six months, even as Wall Street selling has accelerated.
Both assets down over 30 days
Despite the ETF flow divergence, both assets have moved broadly in tandem recently.
Bitcoin was trading around $66,918 at the time of publication, down 8.07% over the past 30 days, while gold was down 8.25% over the same period, trading at $4,676.
In December 2025, Fidelity Digital Assets analyst Chris Kuiper noted that gold and Bitcoin have historically taken turns outperforming, suggesting Bitcoin could take the lead after gold’s strong 2025 run.
