Bitcoin’s Turbulence-Tested Resilience Proves Its Worth as an Asset Class—Citigroup

Wall Street’s latest love-hate relationship with crypto just got more complicated. Citigroup’s analysts—normally busy calculating their own bonuses—are now nodding at Bitcoin’s stubborn refusal to die during market chaos.

The Digital Gold Narrative Gets a Bank Stamp

When traditional assets flinch, Bitcoin keeps flexing. Citi’s report highlights how BTC’s volatility somehow looks tame compared to the meltdowns in ’stable’ markets—take that, bond traders.

A Backhanded Compliment from Finance

Even suits forced to admit: surviving 80% drops and regulatory ambushes makes crypto more asset class than meme. Though they’ll still charge you 2% management fees to ’safely’ expose you to it.

CITI suggests that these movements may indicate the presence of a Bitcoin-specific risk premium, partly influenced by a strengthening gold market and a weakening US dollar. Stable Bitcoin ETF Inflows Amid Uncertainty According to CITI, Bitcoin ETF inflows have remained stable, contrasting sharply with the outflows seen in Ethereum ETFs. Despite recent market turbulence, Bitcoin ETF flows have not experienced a significant decline.  CryptoQuant analyst Maartunn echoes this sentiment, stating that external factors, including ETF flows and futures market interests, have largely driven price increases. Maartunn also notes that Bitcoin’s price surge appears more closely tied to institutional movements rather than on-chain demands. Mixed On-Chain and Off-Chain Metrics As the market evolves, on-chain and off-chain metrics exhibit mixed signals. CITI reports that the stablecoin market cap continues to grow robustly, even amid volatility.  Meanwhile, Layer 1 Ethereum activity shows an upward trend, though Layer 2 users have declined. Bitcoin activity has also registered increases, albeit temporarily.