JPMorgan analysts have noted a shift in investor priorities following the escalation of conflict in the Middle East. According to their findings, market participants are increasingly opting for Bitcoin over gold as a hedge against inflation and market risks, as reported by The Block.

Investment in spot Bitcoin ETFs has continued for the third consecutive month. From April 30 to May 6, investors poured in $1.69 billion. Gold exchange-traded funds have yet to recover from the capital outflow experienced in March.

Source: SoSoValue.

The bank noted that demand for cryptocurrency is rising not only in the retail sector; institutional investors are also increasing their positions through futures on the CME and offshore platforms.

Another channel for capital inflow is Strategy, which is accumulating digital gold faster than last year. Analysts predict that if the current pace continues, purchases could reach $30 billion by year-end.

Bitcoin is trading around $79,503, having lost 2% in the last 24 hours.

Hourly chart of BTC/USDT on Binance. Source: TradingView.

The price of gold stands at $4,727 (+0.59% in 24 hours).

Source: Gold Price.

Institutions Favor Bitcoin

According to a survey by CoinShares, institutional investors have begun to invest more actively in digital assets. The first cryptocurrency remains the most attractive asset for funds, with about 32% of respondents having already invested in it.

Source: CoinShares.

Ethereum ranks second with a 25% share. Analysts also noted a growing interest in Solana.

The study involved 26 asset managers overseeing a total of $1.3 trillion. The share of cryptocurrencies in their portfolios is around 1%—experts described this as a "typical entry size" under current market conditions.

James Butterfill, head of research at CoinShares, attributed the high interest in Bitcoin to investors seeing the greatest growth potential in it. Positive sentiment is linked to the development of spot ETFs and a more lenient stance from regulators.

Institutions are gradually moving away from "old" altcoins, redirecting capital into decentralized finance protocols and new blockchain sectors.

The main obstacles to widespread cryptocurrency adoption, according to respondents, are internal company restrictions and regulatory uncertainty.

Recall that in April, JPMorgan experts reported a sharp decline in capital inflow into crypto assets in the first quarter of 2026.