Gold vs. Bitcoin: Why Billionaire Ray Dalio Says “There Is Only One Gold”

[Zaguru12]

In my understanding of Ray Dalio's statement he dismissed the idea of ​​Bitcoin as digital gold, to which he said “there is only one gold.”

Because Dalio found no real reason for central banks to buy Bitcoin and hold it long-term, in his statement Dalio cast doubt on Bitcoin, even though it is valued as a store of value asset.

I think there is nothing bad here because bitcoin itself is not Gold. Most of the time the major problem as to why you see bitcoin been addressed as a digital gold is when the someone is actually trying to actually explain or give an example mostly to lay man and this comparison is actually because of the store of value which both has. So you see examples like it’s more of a digital gold. But by far it is never regarded sincerely as a digital gold because bitcoin stands on its own.

But I do not like what he said about banks only acquiring gold and that gold is the second asset that banks acquired the most and relate it to bitcoin, that banks are not requiring bitcoin. Banks met gold on earth. In fact people met gold on earth, but bitcoin was just created in 2009 which is less than 2 decades. We have seen United States having laws not to sell their consficated bitcoin. There are many countries that also want to make bitcoin as a reserve asset. It can not just begin within a short period of time.

Banks aren’t acquiring bitcoin because of two reasons one is most countries still have unclear laws about bitcoin and banks are simply trying to keep it cool take a look at how some institutions like even financial institutions buying bitcoin now since the ETF approval, in short period of time we will see banks moving towards here. Secondly is that they are not bold enough.

As for anyone actually doubting bitcoin because of its year of existence i don’t think there is anything that doesn’t have a humble beginning even bitcoin which is an earth metal or material had a day it was first discovered. Bitcoin should even be a case study base on how it has grown in this short period of time there is no asset which has match this comparison as far as I know

[X-ray]

He's not wrong that there is only one gold, from physic standpoint there is only one AU in periodic table after all   but I think majority people realize that bitcoin being called gold or digital gold is just a metaphor or analogy because it functions as store of value in the digital space called internet.

Even from economic standpoint even if he favours gold, there is no problem. Bitcoin will keep growing regardless like it did from few cycles ago all the way until today.

[fuguebtc]

But he should also consider the performance of Bitcoin during Covid 19 pandemic.  

You may have forgotten that the stock market also grew and reached record highs during the covid, not just bitcoin. The reason Bitcoin and stocks are rising is that central bank have loosened monetary policy and injected a huge amount of money into the economy. Therefore, that is not perfect proof that bitcoin is a safe haven

If evaluated fairly and honestly, Bitcoin has the potential to become a safehaven asset and could compete with gold. However, Bitcoin still needs more time to reach that level, not now.

[Luzin]

But I do not like what he said about banks only acquiring gold and that gold is the second asset that banks acquired the most and relate it to bitcoin, that banks are not requiring bitcoin. Banks met gold on earth. In fact people met gold on earth, but bitcoin was just created in 2009 which is less than 2 decades. We have seen United States having laws not to sell their consficated bitcoin. There are many countries that also want to make bitcoin as a reserve asset. It can not just begin within a short period of time.

The fact is like that at the moment. Gold has been recognized worldwide and is used legally. Compare it with Bitcoin, I can say that for now it is still only a minority. Recognition as a reserve asset has been done by a few countries, but they obtained it through seizures. They did not acquire it by deliberately purchasing it, except El Salvador, because they regularly continue to buy it. But let's see, so far not many countries have tried to follow El Salvador. Bitcoin is still a minority asset that has not been able to make the world recognize its value because the majority of its system is in conflict with countries and governments.

[BALIK]

The fact is like that at the moment. Gold has been recognized worldwide and is used legally. Compare it with Bitcoin, I can say that for now it is still only a minority. Recognition as a reserve asset has been done by a few countries, but they obtained it through seizures. They did not acquire it by deliberately purchasing it, except El Salvador, because they regularly continue to buy it. But let's see, so far not many countries have tried to follow El Salvador. Bitcoin is still a minority asset that has not been able to make the world recognize its value because the majority of its system is in conflict with countries and governments.

Yes, Bitcoin remains a minority asset compared to gold. However, I do not think that's because its system conflicts with the interests of governments and nations. Simply because it is still too young for them to put their trust in it.

Their recognition and trust in gold is not accidental. Gold has also taken hundreds, even thousands of years, to prove its role and potential. Similarly, if Bitcoin also wants to achieve the same recognition and acceptance as gold. Bitcoin needs to prove its potential, and that takes time.

[Alpha Marine]

I do not think he sees something as something that comes to replace gold, he is saying the reality to me but he made some mistakes.

While he has previously noted that Bitcoin has some good traits, he now argues that it lacks the history and support needed to replace gold.

This is what the article said. He or whoever wrote the article probably thinks Bitcoin's goal is to replace gold, but that is not the case. Bitcoin is not trying to replace gold, the stock market or even the fiat system. When they have realised that, they will understand what Bitcoin really stands for. The same goes for those who always question what Bitcoin offers. When they look at what Bitcoin offers as a currency, they will understand the worth of Bitcoin.

I agree, he makes a lot of sense, even though he has some facts wrong.

[JigzawMarzipan]

I understand Dalio’s point historically, but Bitcoin doesn’t need to replace gold to succeed. It just needs to exist as an alternative store of value.
Ray Dalio saying “there is only one gold” is interesting, but I think Bitcoin created a new category. Gold is physical scarcity, while Bitcoin is digital scarcity. Both solve different problems.

[FortuneFollower]

 People love doing associations for things they know but can't describe or new..

That's not different with BTC - peep like in the article just found a way to tag BTC to gold and associate one with another

[Iranus]

Banks aren’t acquiring bitcoin because of two reasons one is most countries still have unclear laws about bitcoin and banks are simply trying to keep it cool take a look at how some institutions like even financial institutions buying bitcoin now since the ETF approval, in short period of time we will see banks moving towards here. Secondly is that they are not bold enough.

I'm also a little disappointed that banks have not bought bitcoin yet, as that somewhat slow down the global adoption of bitcoin. But honestly, I do not blame them because of the role of banks, especially the central bank. Their job is to maintain and protect the economy, not to take risks in pursuit of huge profits. Because if they are willing to take risks in pursuit of profit, instead of focusing on protecting the economy. If thing do not go as expected, we will be the ones to bear the consequences.

Their role is completely different from that of organizations and investment funds in the economy. Therefore, their continued neutral and somewhat skeptical attitude towards bitcoin is not necessarily wrong.

[Wind_FURY]

"There's only one Gold" - Laughable.

But it's TRUE! Bitcoin surged since the United States' conflict started, while Gold is down.

OK, THEN Gold has failed as a safe-haven and as a store of value.

 

[Taskford]

Ray Dalio says there is only one gold. Are there anyone that have said before that bitcoin is gold? I think some people do not know what it means as bitcoin is the digital gold. No one is saying bitcoin is gold but they are saying bitcoin is a store of value, one of the characteristics seen in gold.

The man talked some sense though because he has said in early 2026 that people can buy either bitcoin or gold. So he sees the value in bitcoin also.

But I do not like what he said about banks only acquiring gold and that gold is the second asset that banks acquired the most and relate it to bitcoin, that banks are not requiring bitcoin. Banks met gold on earth. In fact people met gold on earth, but bitcoin was just created in 2009 which is less than 2 decades. We have seen United States having laws not to sell their consficated bitcoin. There are many countries that also want to make bitcoin as a reserve asset. It can not just begin within a short period of time.

But the fact still remains, which is bitcoin is a store of value.

https://www.tipranks.com/news/gold-vs-bitcoin-why-billionaire-ray-dalio-says-there-is-only-one-gold

Maybe he's to afraid dealing with volatility of Bitcoin and only looking at short term gains, Also it seems even if he have small portion of Bitcoin still he believes that gold still the best safe haven asset.

I think he's only for short term and didn't actually have same long term belief as what Saylor have.

But I don also think its worth to pay attention on what he say, since even if he say such thing it will not change the fact that Bitcoin is good asset and those people believe then will deal with it for long term basis will eventually get rewarded.

[Fivestar4everMVP]

Ray Dalio says there is only one gold. Are there anyone that have said before that bitcoin is gold? I think some people do not know what it means as bitcoin is the digital gold. No one is saying bitcoin is gold but they are saying bitcoin is a store of value, one of the characteristics seen in gold.

The man talked some sense though because he has said in early 2026 that people can buy either bitcoin or gold. So he sees the value in bitcoin also.

But I do not like what he said about banks only acquiring gold and that gold is the second asset that banks acquired the most and relate it to bitcoin, that banks are not requiring bitcoin. Banks met gold on earth. In fact people met gold on earth, but bitcoin was just created in 2009 which is less than 2 decades. We have seen United States having laws not to sell their consficated bitcoin. There are many countries that also want to make bitcoin as a reserve asset. It can not just begin within a short period of time.

But the fact still remains, which is bitcoin is a store of value.

Many people actually do misinterprete that line which states that Bitcoin is digital gold, and shows how limiting some minds can be, those who are possibly new to bitcoin and have not taken time out to study and understand why bitcoin is often referred to as the digital gold are the ones who will often come up with statements like this..

And again, another fact to put into consideration is the fact that Bitcoin is still relatively new to alot of people, they don't completely trust it yet especially when they do not know who exactly the creator is..
Some one here in my area once told me that he can not put his money into something he doesn't know who created it - referring to bitcoin of course, and his reason was that if his money goes missing, there will be no one to hold responsible, I asked him a simple question, the times he was scammed and money stolen from his bank account, how many times have he been able to access the bank manager to complain, and he kept quiet..

Many are simply ignorant of some basic facts, but I believe with time, more and more people will grow love naturally for Bitcoin especially people like this man.

[Richbased]

You need to understand that no matter how much the price of bitcoin worths, gold will still remain relevant in years to come and will never lose its value. The reason is simple, we have digital gold and physical gold too which makes it more accessible to everyone unlike bitcoin that is mainly used through the internet so there's nothing like bitcoin being a digital gold. Bitcoin only exist in digital form alone so we should stop calling bitcoin a digital gold.

Bitcoin is a valuable asset that can stand the test of time without losing it's value and so also is gold a valuable asset with those potentials. Just as bitcoin is hedge against inflation so also is gold, they're are both worthy of investing on but what separates them is decentralization. Yes, there is only one gold, gold is gold while bitcoin is bitcoin and both are valuable in their unique ways so there's no need for comparison.

[purple_sparkles]

You need to understand that no matter how much the price of bitcoin worths, gold will still remain relevant in years to come and will never lose its value. The reason is simple, we have digital gold and physical gold too which makes it more accessible to everyone unlike bitcoin that is mainly used through the internet so there's nothing like bitcoin being a digital gold. Bitcoin only exist in digital form alone so we should stop calling bitcoin a digital gold.

Bitcoin is a valuable asset that can stand the test of time without losing it's value and so also is gold a valuable asset with those potentials. Just as bitcoin is hedge against inflation so also is gold, they're are both worthy of investing on but what separates them is decentralization. Yes, there is only one gold, gold is gold while bitcoin is bitcoin and both are valuable in their unique ways so there's no need for comparison.

In fact, it’s very good that besides gold there is also bitcoin. We can have several options and sources for investing with a high level of security, knowing that in a few years we won’t lose our funds. Bitcoin has proven that it can withstand and survive different crises and grow in value. I would only be happy if more similar low-risk investment options appear.

[Hamza2424]

Ray Dalio says there is only one gold. Are there anyone that have said before that bitcoin is gold? I think some people do not know what it means as bitcoin is the digital gold. No one is saying bitcoin is gold but they are saying bitcoin is a store of value, one of the characteristics seen in gold.

The man talked some sense though because he has said in early 2026 that people can buy either bitcoin or gold. So he sees the value in bitcoin also.

Well, guess what? He is wrong, banks want to hold Bitcoin because the crypto industry is getting big each year. If they won't hold it, they lose it once for all and also some of their customers like stable-currency alone has made them lose trillions in business by attracting their customers, haha diabolical move though.

Now, banks are adopting crypto, like BTC ETF. Integrating it for their customer ease so they can easily invest. He did see the value in btc and gold, and he is right that the first choice will always be gold, because btc is risky, gold is here from the start, but btc is new, and maybe banks will take around 100 to 1000 years to actually accept it like they accept gold.

[Mame89]

Bitcoin is a thousand times better than listening to it. Because you don't know how much gold is in the world. If the supply of gold increases tomorrow, the price of gold will continue to decrease from tomorrow. Again, since gold is a physical asset, it can be destroyed, lost, stolen or burned. But since Bitcoin has a fixed supply and Bitcoin is not controlled by anyone and can be secured only by twelve faces.
If you compare gold and Bitcoin, Bitcoin is much better in terms of profit. Gold requires storage, that is, space, but Bitcoin is an asset that if you have billions of dollars, you don't need separate storage to keep them. Bitcoin does not need a bank. That's why we especially think Bitcoin is better than gold.

Yes. I think so too Bitcoin cannot be controlled by anyone and it doesn't even need banks. So, banks shouldn't acquire it. Talking about gold and Bitcoin, especially comparing them, is difficult because these two assets have different characteristics. As you said, gold has a large storage capacity, while Bitcoin only requires a seed phase and can be easily carried anywhere. However, we cannot underestimate gold as a valuable asset, even though it has been around for centuries. Its supply continues to increase due to its continued mining yet its price remains stable and even tends to rise as it is now.

That's why it's often recommended to own both assets, especially in the midst of a currency war like the current one. Bitcoin and gold are the best options for storing value. People's perspectives on gold and Bitcoin differ, especially when they relate to banks, which can be controlled by certain parties. I agree with you that Bitcoin is more profitable than gold, but gold remains a second-best option after Bitcoin.

[LFC_Bitcoin]

I don’t care what that dinosaur thinks really. Bitcoin is far better than gold because it’s easier to move and store. You can send Bitcoin anywhere in the world in minutes, while gold is heavy and hard to transport.

Bitcoin is also limited to 21 million coins so no one can just make more of it. It’s digital so you don’t need a vault or physical storage. Gold has been valuable for a long time but Bitcoin is more suited for the internet age and global transactions.

[Yorubek]

Bitcoin is a thousand times better than listening to it. Because you don't know how much gold is in the world. If the supply of gold increases tomorrow, the price of gold will continue to decrease from tomorrow. Again, since gold is a physical asset, it can be destroyed, lost, stolen or burned. But since Bitcoin has a fixed supply and Bitcoin is not controlled by anyone and can be secured only by twelve faces.
If you compare gold and Bitcoin, Bitcoin is much better in terms of profit. Gold requires storage, that is, space, but Bitcoin is an asset that if you have billions of dollars, you don't need separate storage to keep them. Bitcoin does not need a bank. That's why we especially think Bitcoin is better than gold.

Yes. I think so too Bitcoin cannot be controlled by anyone and it doesn't even need banks. So, banks shouldn't acquire it. Talking about gold and Bitcoin, especially comparing them, is difficult because these two assets have different characteristics. As you said, gold has a large storage capacity, while Bitcoin only requires a seed phase and can be easily carried anywhere. However, we cannot underestimate gold as a valuable asset, even though it has been around for centuries. Its supply continues to increase due to its continued mining yet its price remains stable and even tends to rise as it is now.

That's why it's often recommended to own both assets, especially in the midst of a currency war like the current one. Bitcoin and gold are the best options for storing value. People's perspectives on gold and Bitcoin differ, especially when they relate to banks, which can be controlled by certain parties. I agree with you that Bitcoin is more profitable than gold, but gold remains a second-best option after Bitcoin.

I agree with you, gold and bitcoin are two different assets, the use of gold has been going on for ages and will continue in the future, the amount of gold is increasing over time and will double in the future, but the supply of bitcoin is absolutely limited to a maximum 21 million, the amount of bitcoin will never increase beyond 21 million in the future. The government can control gold if it wants, but the government cannot control bitcoin if it wants because it is completely decentralized. It is good to have diversification in investments as this reduces investment risk and increases the possibility of making money. No matter how valuable gold is, I will choose bitcoin because by consistently buy bitcoin with a long-term plan and holding it with confidence, we can make more money in the future than gold.

[PrivacyG]

He does however have a point.  Bitcoin may not be as new as it was a deecade ago.  But it still has a LONG series of decades to go before having gone through all the ups and downs Gold has.  And until more history sticks to the back of Bitcoin, there will be a lot of people who will rather pick what has always worked in the past, as in Gold.

We can make our arguments for how much better Bitcoin is but in a real scenario where things go really bad, while Bitcoin and luxury will not matter, people who would have physical Gold will have a some what advantage over those who own Bitcoin.  Even if it will be harder to prove whether the Gold is real than it is to prove whether a Satoshi is legitimate.

This forever debate will never stop because there is such a long distance between how long Gold has been out there for versus Bitcoin and because of the properties Gold has versus Bitcoin.  Yes there is only one Gold and only one Bitcoin, I do not see any thing wrong with that.  Let people choose between the two and if Bitcoin has a future, it will have it and the people who choose Bitcoin during more difficult times will then be rewarded.

It is all about risk, is it not?

[Luzin]

Yes, Bitcoin remains a minority asset compared to gold. However, I do not think that's because its system conflicts with the interests of governments and nations. Simply because it is still too young for them to put their trust in it.

Their recognition and trust in gold is not accidental. Gold has also taken hundreds, even thousands of years, to prove its role and potential. Similarly, if Bitcoin also wants to achieve the same recognition and acceptance as gold. Bitcoin needs to prove its potential, and that takes time.

For now, they see it because of its value. Its value always exceeds the previous highest value. This has happened over several periods. This belief has become doctrine and continues to grow until now. This condition causes trust to increase even more. Therefore, its value continues to rise day by day. Major entrepreneurs also speculate, and this creates a psychological effect that adds to the belief of most new investors entering. But basically, we know that the system will still be at odds with the national financial system. So in the next period, what will happen if the global economic financial government system remains the same, Bitcoin will only be an asset commodity. They will never acknowledge it because the state system is centralized.