Gold and Bitcoin Are 2026's Worst Major Assets — A Historic First

Gold and Bitcoin are the two worst-performing major assets of 2026 so far. Through October 23, gold was down 7.5% year to date and Bitcoin was down 7.3%, putting them last among 21 major asset classes — and both have fallen further since, to losses of about 10% for gold and more than 11% for Bitcoin. Creative Planning chief market strategist Charlie Bilello, who compiles the ranking, says the two assets have never occupied the bottom two places together in any calendar year in his data, which stretches back to 2011.

What happened?

Bilello published the table on X on October 25, and coverage widened again this weekend as the losses deepened into the October close. Gold ended Friday, October 30 at $3,884.90 an ounce, a one-year low, while Bitcoin closed October near $77,302 to $77,558, down about 7.3% in October alone. Both assets are now trailing stocks, bonds and even cash: short-term U.S. Treasury bills returned 2.9% over the same period in Bilello's table.

The rest of the leaderboard shows how unusual the pairing is. A broad commodities basket led the 21 asset classes with a gain of 52.5%, U.S. large-cap value stocks rose 23.7%, the Nasdaq 100 gained 15.1% and U.S. large-cap stocks rose 12.3%. Only 57% of the 21 classes were positive for the year — and the two assets investors most often describe as hedges against debt, deficits and currency debasement sat below all of them.

Why it's blowing up

The story is the reversal, not just the loss. Gold gained 63.7% in 2025 and surged to a record intraday high of $5,500 an ounce in late January 2026 before erasing those gains. Bitcoin set its own record above $126,000 in October 2025, fell below $58,000 in early July, rebounded to $87,000 and was rejected there — leaving it roughly 35% below its peak. An asset that topped the table in 2024, Bitcoin with a 121% gain, and the asset that topped it in 2025, gold, are now at the bottom together.

The pressure, analysts say, came from energy and rates. Surging oil prices revived inflation concerns and pushed markets toward expecting tighter, not looser, Federal Reserve policy — the Fed held its rate at 3.75% to 4.00% — and neither gold nor Bitcoin pays any income, so higher expected rates weigh on both. ING noted that gold also failed to benefit from falling equities and lower Treasury yields last week, when it dropped about 4%, suggesting investors were focused on the inflation side of expensive energy rather than using the metal as a shelter. Gold-mining stocks show the same stress: about 92% of stocks in the GDX gold miners ETF were trading below their 50-day moving average, according to The Kobeissi Letter cited in the coverage.

Key facts

• The ranking: Gold -7.5% and Bitcoin -7.3% year to date through October 23, last among 21 major asset classes, per Charlie Bilello of Creative Planning — a first in his data back to 2011.
• Since then: Both fell further into the October close — losses of about 10% for gold and more than 11% for Bitcoin in the updated weekend coverage.
• The leaders: Commodities +52.5%, U.S. large-cap value +23.7%, Nasdaq 100 +15.1%, U.S. large-cap stocks +12.3%, Treasury bills +2.9%.
• The long view: Since 2011, Bitcoin's annualized return in Bilello's data is 120.6%, against 6.3% for gold — one weak year does not change that history, and two months of 2026 remain.

Sources: Bitcoin.com News, CryptoPotato, KuCoin News, TradingView News.

What's next

The ranking is a year-to-date snapshot, not a final result — the table can still change before December 31. The near-term test is the week ahead: U.S. midterm elections on Tuesday, November 3, central-bank decisions, and the October jobs report on Friday, November 6, all of which can move oil, rate expectations and risk appetite at once. For now, the headline fact stands: in a year led by commodities and value stocks, the two classic alternative hedges are the ones at the bottom. This article reports what happened and why markets reacted; it is not financial advice.

FAQ

Are gold and Bitcoin really the worst assets of 2026?

Yes, in Charlie Bilello's ranking of 21 major asset classes: gold was down 7.5% and Bitcoin 7.3% year to date through October 23, the bottom two places, and both fell further into the October close.

Has this happened before?

No. Bilello says gold and Bitcoin have never finished — or sat — in the bottom two places together in any calendar year in his data, which goes back to 2011.

Why are both falling at the same time?

Coverage points to surging oil prices, revived inflation concerns and expectations of tighter Fed policy. Neither asset pays income, so higher expected interest rates pressure both at once.

What performed best instead?

A broad commodities basket led the table, up 52.5%, followed by U.S. large-cap value stocks at +23.7%. Even short-term Treasury bills, up 2.9%, are ahead of both gold and Bitcoin this year.