Gold-backed Cryptocurrencies Surpass Other Crypto Assets.
Since the start of the year, gold-backed cryptocurrencies have outperformed almost all other crypto assets, surpassing Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana.
Gold prices have soared to a record high, surpassing $2,950 per troy ounce. This increase follows US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports globally. Although Bitcoin was used as a safeguard against geopolitical tensions in 2024, gold has outperformed Bitcoin and numerous other asset classes since the beginning of the year, according to The Block, citing Bitwise.
Since early 2025, gold-backed cryptocurrencies like PAXG and XAUT have delivered impressive returns, achieving approximately 11% growth among the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market cap, as reported by CoinMarketCap on February 11.
Gold-backed stablecoins function like fiat-backed stablecoins, but their value is linked to gold rather than fiat currencies. They can be transferred, utilized in decentralized finance (DeFi) applications, pledged against other assets, and traded on crypto exchanges. Although there’s a rising demand for physical gold, the demand for gold-backed crypto assets is still minimal compared to the broader crypto market. As of February 11, total trading volumes were approximately $44 million, with Paxos’ PAXG accounting for $34 million and Tether’s XAUT for $7.2 million, according to CoinGecko. The increase in the total market cap for PAXG and XAUT since early 2024 mirrors the rise in gold prices, indicating that no new gold-backed tokens have been created, but growth is driven by the appreciation of the underlying asset’s value.
Conversely, the daily trading volume for the USDT stablecoin surpasses $63 billion. Since early 2024, the overall market capitalization of stable tokens has increased from $130 billion to $225 billion, according to DefiLlama’s data as of February 11.
Although there is a strong demand for physical gold, interest in gold-backed crypto assets remains minimal when compared to the broader crypto market. As of February 11, Coingecko reported total trading volumes around $44 million, with $34 million attributed to Paxos’ PAXG and $7.2 million to Tether (XAUT). Since the start of 2024, the combined market cap growth of PAXG and XAUT mirrors the rise in gold prices. This suggests that no new gold-based tokens are being created; the market cap increases are solely a result of rising asset prices.
