Cryptos Struggle as Gold and Silver Rally Amid Macro Uncertainty

Major cryptocurrencies have faced continued pressure in November, while gold and silver climb, highlighting diverging trends between digital assets and traditional safe havens.

Bitcoin (BTC) has dropped more than 9% this month, slipping below the critical on-chain support of $100,000, according to CoinDesk data. Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL), and Dogecoin (DOGE) have declined between 11% and 20%, while payments-focused XRP has been relatively resilient, falling just over 7%.

The weakness in crypto comes even as the U.S. dollar index (DXY) loses momentum after resistance above 100 earlier this month. Typically, a softer dollar supports bitcoin and the broader crypto market—but this month, only precious metals have benefited. Gold and silver have surged roughly 4% and 9%, respectively, with palladium and platinum also posting gains above 1%.

Why Bitcoin Is Lagging

Greg Magadini, director of derivatives at Amberdata, attributes bitcoin’s subdued performance to a combination of overbought positioning and broader system risks. “Post government shutdown, risk assets are selling off as all the ‘good news’ catalysts have already been priced in, including Fed easing, China-U.S. trade cooperation, and the resolved shutdown,” he told CoinDesk.

Magadini also pointed to potential stress in digital asset treasuries (DATs)—entities that have driven bullish momentum in crypto over the past year. DATs rely heavily on credit markets, issuing debt and convertible bonds to fund purchases of crypto. Increased competition for credit from governments and AI ventures could force DATs to liquidate holdings if markets tighten, triggering cascading sell-offs—particularly in altcoins, though bitcoin is less vulnerable.

Gold and Silver Rally Amid Fiscal Concerns

Precious metals have strengthened amid growing concerns over fiscal health in major economies. Government debt-to-GDP ratios are high worldwide: Japan exceeds 220%, the U.S. is above 120%, and France and Italy surpass 110%. While China’s government debt is below 100%, its total non-financial debt exceeds 300% of GDP.

“The precious metals rally isn’t about a flight from the dollar—it reflects deeply broken fiscal policy globally, especially in the Eurozone, where high-debt countries dominate the ECB,” said Robin Brooks, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

Historically, gold has often led bitcoin’s price by roughly 80 days, suggesting that BTC could benefit once gold’s rally stabilizes—though whether this pattern will hold in the current macro environment remains uncertain.