In 2023, Bitcoin (BTC<\/a>) and Cathie Wood\u2019s Coinbase investment are finally outperforming Warren Buffett\u2019s popular \u201ccrypto bet\u201d in Brazil\u2019s fintech giant Nubank.<\/p>\n As of March 17, Bitcoin\u2019s price is up nearly 55% year-to-date (YTD).\u00a0In comparison,\u00a0Nubank \u2014 trading as NU \u2014 has risen only 26%. Meanwhile, another crypto-exposure stock,\u00a0Coinbase<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 trading as\u00a0COIN \u2014 has seen the biggest rebound of the three, rising over 100% YTD.\u00a0<\/p>\n Nevertheless, Buffett’s investment has fared better than COIN over the past 12 months.<\/p>\n As of March 17, NU is down 38% year-over-year compared with COIN\u2019s 61.76%, nearly equal to Bitcoin\u2019s 37% losses in the same period.<\/p>\n Buffett\u2019s investment firm, Berkshire Hathaway,\u00a0purchased $1.5 billion worth of class-A Nubank stock<\/a> in two separate rounds in July 2021 and February 2022.<\/p>\n The news came as a surprise to many, as Buffett is a well-known cryptocurrency critic<\/a>\u00a0and Nubank offers crypto trading services via its Nucripto wing. In May 2022, the bank said that it would allocate 1% of its net assets to Bitcoin. <\/p>\n \u201cThis move reinforces the company\u2019s conviction in Bitcoin\u2019s current and future potential in disrupting financial services in the region,\u201d Nubank said at the time.<\/p>\n But despite Nubank\u2019s crypto exposure and NU\u2019s price decline, Buffett has not sold a single share, according to Berkshire\u2019s latest\u00a0annual earnings report<\/a>. <\/p>\n The decision to keep holding NU through a rough market likely coincides with Nubank\u2019s growth in the Latin American banking sector.<\/p>\n Nu Holdings, the parent company of Nubank,\u00a0reported<\/a>\u00a0a solid 2022 with 140% year-on-year growth in revenue and a 38% year-over-year rise in active customers.\u00a0<\/p>\n The same cannot be said about Coinbase\u2019s earnings in 2022<\/a>\u00a0with\u00a0its 57% drop in year-over-year revenue. <\/p>\n Related:\u00a0Crypto acted as safe haven amid SVB and Signature bank run: Cathie Wood<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n But ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood appears unfazed and is continuing to buy COIN shares via her\u00a0ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) and ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) in 2023. The COIN buys, in particular,\u00a0account for roughly 30% of all the stock purchased<\/a>\u00a0so far this year.<\/p>\n As a result, Coinbase has become Wood\u2019s fifth-largest holding on record, worth nearly $670 million at the time of writing.\u00a0<\/p>\n Comparing Bitcoin\u2019s price performance with the market debut of Coinbase and Nu Holdings reaffirms that BTC not only regularly\u00a0outperforms stocks\u00a0in general<\/a>\u00a0but also crypto-exposure stocks \u2014 although exceptions have been seen, such as\u00a0with the Bitcoin mining stock boom<\/a>\u00a0in 2021.\u00a0<\/p>\n But overall, holding Bitcoin is proving to be a better strategy year-over-year, and likely with more upside potential<\/a>, than traditional stocks.\u00a0<\/p>\n Notably, NU has dropped by more than 50% since its market debut in December 2021. Since then, BTC has fared better with a 44% decline in the same period.\u00a0<\/p>\nBitcoin vs. crypto-exposure stocks NU and COIN<\/h2>\n
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Warren Buffett sticks by his neobank investment<\/h2>\n
Cathie Wood doubles down on COIN in 2023<\/h2>\n
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Holding Bitcoin a better strategy?<\/h2>\n
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