This week, bitcoin fell by 7% and at some point approached $58,000, while the Nasdaq 100 shows a slight increase. For some, the fact that the pullback did not have wider ramifications shows that bitcoin remains far from the mainstream.

Bitcoin ceases to behave like a stock

The pandemic-era correlation between bitcoin and Nasdaq 100 futures is disappearing. This, coupled with the recent correction, provokes debate about what role the token can play in investment portfolios.

The 30-day correlation between virtual currency and futures has dropped to almost zero in recent days, from a 2021 peak by the end of September of 0.56 - a value that suggests tech stocks and bitcoin often move in tandem. The correlation has generally been positive since February 2020.

Bitcoin is up about 40% since the end of September, surpassing the Nasdaq 100's 11% rise. The stated role of the token as a means of protection against inflation with a sharp increase in prices in the global economy is one of the factors that led to the growth of the digital asset to a peak of almost $69,000 on November 10.

Carsten Menke, head of the new generation research department at Julius Baer in Zurich, believes that the evolution of the relationship between stocks and bitcoin does not harm the arguments that it is a reliable modern means of saving for portfolios.

"The lack of consistent and negative correlation between bitcoin and stocks clearly indicates that bitcoin is not yet a safe haven," he said, stressing that in times of stress in the financial market, it tends to suffer like other riskier assets.

Bitcoin hovered near a key inflection point of $60,000 on Wednesday as traders seemed to restrain the excessive speculation that last week led to a record price for the world's largest cryptocurrency.

The digital currency fell 3.4% before offsetting losses and remaining unchanged. Some observers attribute the recent drop from a record high of $68,991 to profit-taking before the end of the year. But the decline in the number of meme coins such as Dogecoin and Shiba Inu also suggests that cryptocurrencies may "wash away some speculation" by retail traders, analyst Mike McGlone said.