In 2021, it was popular to compare bitcoin with gold and discuss the rivalry between the two instruments. However, in 2021, bitcoin won the race against gold. Despite the Fed's tight monetary policy, bitcoin is likely to resume its rally to new highs in the near future.

Coingecko published a report on the main trends of 2021 including the confrontation between gold and bitcoin. The portal's analytical data shows that the main cryptocurrency significantly outperformed the precious metal in terms of profitability. In the previous year, the digital asset managed to show a growth of 60%, which made the crypto-asset the most profitable financial instrument of the year. At the same time, gold and treasury bonds fell by 6%.

The statistics indicate that bitcoin is not "digital gold," but a new and effective tool for protecting funds from inflation and investing. Currently, gold is only able to compete due to less volatility and the traditionalism of some institutional and large investors. Soon, the precious metal may be comparable to stablecoins in terms of functionality, as BTC has won the competition. The closest pursuer of the cryptocurrency in terms of yield was oil, which finished the year with a gain of 58%, but these financial instruments are different in functionality.

Despite a strong 2021, the cryptocurrency gave up in early 2022 and is trading around $42,000. The asset rebounded from $40,000 and managed to reach above $44,000. Many experts perceived this event as the formation of a local bottom, which is a bullish signal. According to Fidelity Investments, bitcoin formed a local bottom near $40,000 and may resume increasing soon. Glassnode data shows that mining companies and large BTC holders began to actively accumulate coins after its decrease below $50,000. Seba Bank CEO G. Buehler said that bitcoin is likely to reach $75,000 in 2022.

The subdued but optimistic outlook for bitcoin is offset by a decline in its price on January 13. The cryptocurrency has fallen by 3% and as of 1 p.m. is trading around $42,100. The fall is due to an unsuccessful breakthrough of important resistance at $44,500, where the coin faced serious pressure from sellers for the first time. During yesterday's trading session, the major indices were under pressure and this affected BTC/USD quotes through correlation with the stock market. The price is testing the mirror level of $42,500, but there are no prerequisites for growth. The market still lacks large volumes of purchases, and the technical indicators of the asset are declining: the stochastic oscillator and the RSI are close to the mark of 40 and may leave the bullish zone, and the MACD failed to develop the upward momentum and continued the sideways movement below the zero mark. All of these factors suggest that bitcoin is weak and not ready for an uptrend, and buyers are passively accumulating volumes. The consolidation period continues.