Bitcoin Holds Firm as Nasdaq Slides, Fueling Hopes of Decoupling
Bitcoin (BTC) is beginning to carve out its own path as U.S. stocks continue their steep descent, prompting renewed optimism among crypto bulls who have long hoped for a decoupling from traditional risk assets.
As of Friday afternoon, the Nasdaq is down another 5% after Thursday’s 6% rout, triggered by President Trump’s sweeping new tariffs. Yet bitcoin is trading around $83,000 — up about 1% in the past 24 hours and off just 3.5% since the tariff shock, showing signs of resilience rarely seen in recent weeks.
The divergence is striking, particularly as crypto-adjacent equities — including Coinbase (COIN), MicroStrategy (MSTR), and miners like Semler Scientific (SMLR) — have suffered double-digit losses during the same stretch.
The broader digital asset market is also in recovery mode, with the CoinDesk 20 Index climbing, driven by 4-5% gains in XRP, Solana (SOL), and Cardano (ADA).
“Bitcoin has held up impressively well amid the chaos,” said David Hernandez, crypto strategist at 21Shares. “It’s reinforcing the idea that BTC may finally be maturing into a macro hedge, especially in times of uncertainty.”
Standard Chartered’s Geoff Kendrick added that bitcoin tends to mirror tech stocks during stable market conditions but often acts as a hedge during panic moments. “This might now also include acting as a buffer against U.S. geopolitical risk,” he said in a Friday note.
Still, others suggest corporate treasury buying could be driving the move, citing potential ongoing purchases from GameStop and MicroStrategy. “This could still be part of a structured accumulation,” Fundstrat’s Sean Farrell wrote on X. “But if bitcoin continues to outperform into next week, we’ll need to revisit that thesis.”
Whether this marks the beginning of true decoupling or a temporary divergence remains to be seen — but the market is watching closely.
