

Bitcoin isn’t just a tech stock on steroids. What really moves it.
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. About the author: Brian Schreiner is the founder and chief investment officer of Alpha Rock Investments, a boutique investment management firm. Since the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in early 2024, investors have been haunted by a persistent narrative: “Bitcoin is just a tech stock on steroids." The common view is that when the stock market sneezes, Bitcoin catches a cold.
As soon as liquidity dries up, crypto goes into free fall. It is a convenient theory for Bitcoin skeptics. But a closer look at the data reveals what many investors are missing: Bitcoin hasn’t been highly correlated with stocks.
Generally, a high correlation of +0.7 to +1.0 means that two assets move closely together or in lockstep. Moderate correlations of +0.3 to +0.7 mean that a relationship exists, but the assets often diverge. Low correlations of 0.0 to +0.3 mean that the assets don’t move together very often and, at the lower end, their movements are entirely independent.
To understand the true relationship between Bitcoin and stocks, my firm looked at the correlation coefficients of the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF to the S&P 500 SPY ETF and BITB to Invesco QQQ Trust ETF. Since the launch of the BITB last year, its average correlation with the SPY and QQQ has sat squarely at the lower-end of the moderate range: 0.38 and 0.39, respectively. So while Bitcoin and the stock market are influenced by some of the same market forces, they are by no means tethered to one another.
They both have unique drivers. Generally speaking, Bitcoin halving—the programmed four-year reduction in new coin supply—doesn’t impact the stock market. Bitcoin adoption rates, sovereign purchases, corporate treasury purchases, and government
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