Cathie Wood has a message for nervous Bitcoin (BTC) holders: relax. The recent weakness is temporary, and the cryptocurrency is simply behaving like a classic risk-on asset while "climbing a wall of worry."
In a Tuesday interview with Fox Business, Wood laid out her thesis that Bitcoin's infamous 4-year boom-bust cycle is about to get a lot less dramatic. The reason? Institutional money is flooding in through ETFs and corporate balance sheets, fundamentally changing the game.
With major players now steadily accumulating BTC, Wood argues those gut-wrenching 75%-90% drawdowns from past bear markets just aren't going to happen anymore. In her view, we may have already seen the bottom of this cycle.
She contrasted Bitcoin's current behavior with gold's recent strength, calling the precious metal's rally a typical risk-off reaction driven by geopolitical jitters. Wood expects gold to face headwinds ahead, much like it did during the innovation-driven boom of the 1980s and '90s when technological progress stole the spotlight.
Putting Money Where Her Mouth Is
Wood isn't just talking—Ark Invest is actively growing its crypto exposure. The firm has been increasing positions in Coinbase (COIN), Circle (CRCL), and the ArkB Bitcoin ETF.
Her perspective echoes recent analysis from Standard Chartered, which argued that massive ETF inflows have made Bitcoin's halving cycle increasingly irrelevant as a price catalyst. While the bank trimmed its 2025 BTC target to $100,000, it still expects its longer-term thesis to play out by 2026.
Looking ahead, Wood remains bullish on both AI and Bitcoin. She said Ark Invest will keep expanding its Bitcoin ETF holdings, emphasizing that steady, passive inflows ultimately strengthen both investor returns and the firm's long-term strategy.