Catenaa, Wednesday, March 26, 2025-Standard Chartered Bank found that replacing Tesla with bitcoin in a reworked “Magnificent 7” index improved returns and reduced volatility.
The bank’s “Mag 7B” index, which includes bitcoin instead of Tesla, outperformed the original “Magnificent 7” by about 5% since 2017, according to Geoffrey Kendrick, global head of digital assets research. Bitcoin’s lower volatility made Mag 7B more efficient, he said.
Bitcoin, valued at $1.7 trillion—more than twice Tesla’s $800 billion—aligns more with Nasdaq than gold, Kendrick said. He suggested this could boost institutional investment.
Mag 7B demonstrated lower volatility in every year analyzed, with an average annual return 1% higher than the Mag 7. Kendrick noted that bitcoin’s performance has increasingly mirrored Nvidia’s, while Tesla now trades more like ether.
Since spot bitcoin ETFs launched in 2024, bitcoin has traded similarly to tech stocks, Kendrick said, further strengthening its case for institutional portfolios.
Kendrick also sees bitcoin gaining as markets anticipate a softer U.S. tariff announcement on April 2. With the Nasdaq coming off its worst quarter since mid-2022, he expects portfolio rebalancing to drive fresh bitcoin buying.
Bitcoin is trading near $88,300, with $90,000 in focus, Kendrick said.
