Bloomberg: Bitcoin lags stocks as its risk-asset appeal weakens

Bloomberg said Bitcoin has failed to keep pace with the stock market even as risk appetite has recovered. The outlet said Bitcoin is down about 16% year to date, while the S&P 500 is up 10%, and that it has also trailed equities over the past one month and six months. It added that U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs posted more than $1 billion in net outflows over the past five trading days, pushing cumulative net inflows since the start of the year into negative territory. In the market, speculative capital is being spread across assets tied to AI and other themes, while institutional investors are increasingly using derivatives and hedging strategies, a shift that analysts said has left Bitcoin less volatile than in the past. Bloomberg said several factors once expected to support Bitcoin's broad appeal, including a friendly stance from regulators, the buildout of institutional infrastructure, and speculative demand, remain in place. Even so, the widening gap with the stock market's gains is adding to disappointment among bulls.