Crypto Lagged Gold, Stocks, But 2026 Offers Chance For ‘catch Up’

Since the start of November, gold is up 9%, the S&P 500 has gained 1%, and Bitcoin is down 20%, but 2026 could see crypto close the gap.

The crypto market will be bleeding into 2026 depsite other major assets gaining; however, there will be a chance for crypto to play catch-up in the new year, according to market intelligence platform Santiment.

In an X post on Tuesday, analysts from Santiment said that Bitcoin (BTC) is trailing gold and the S&P 500 stock market index, with both having made slight recoveries after a crash in November.

Since the start of November, gold is up 9%, the S&P 500 has gained 1%, and Bitcoin is down 20%, trading for around $88,000 as of Wednesday.

“The correlation between Bitcoin & crypto compared to other major sectors is still lagging behind,” Santiment analysts said, adding that “heading to 2026, there will remain an opportunity for crypto to play catch-up.”

Large holders scooping up crypto again could be the first sign of a shift back, as whales slowed accumulation in the second half of 2025, according to Santiment.

Generally, large holders and whales are considered market movers, and their trades can influence market behavior, liquidity and investor psychology.

“Historically, the best recipe for a bear pattern to flip to a bullish one is when large wallets accumulate, and retail dumps,” Santiment analysts added.

Long-term Bitcoin holders have also stopped selling, putting the brakes on offloading crypto for the first time six months after trimming their positions from 14.8 million coins in mid-July to 14.3 million in December.

Garrett Jin, former CEO of the now-defunct crypto exchange BitForex, speculated that traders have already started to shift out of other sectors and back into crypto.

Source: CoinTelegraph