Why You Should Benchmark Every Investment Against Bitcoin

In this article, I am diving into something that’s been on my mind lately in the world of investing: why you should always compare any stock, crypto, or trade idea against Bitcoin. This was inspired by a feature I just discovered on TradingView whilst examining my investment portfolio and trying to decide what stocks to buy.

The Tip: How to Easily Compare Any Ticker to Bitcoin

Let’s start with the practical bit. If you’re using TradingView (and if you’re not, you should—it’s free and very powerful), there’s an incredibly simple way to view any asset’s performance relative to Bitcoin. You can also connect your broker directly to make trades and track your portfolio (for example with Interactive Brokers).

Just pull up the chart for your ticker of interest—say, AAPL for Apple—and then in the top right corner of the chart there is a dropdown where you can switch between the TICKER currency and BTC. Boom, you’re now looking at the TICKER/BTC pair. This shows you how the asset is performing against Bitcoin, not just in fiat money terms (e.g. USD or EUR).

For example, take a look at this screenshot I grabbed from TradingView showing AAPL/BTC on a daily chart. You can see the consistent stock underperformance over 12 months vs BTC. It’s eye-opening stuff.

Why bother? Because in my view, Bitcoin isn’t just another asset—it’s the benchmark for risk-adjusted returns.

Bitcoin: The Ultimate Risk Adjusted Benchmark That’s Hard to Beat

Bitcoin is sitting at around a $2.3 trillion market cap right now, making it one of the largest assets on the planet. But what sets it apart isn’t just the size; it’s the security and decentralization. No single person, company, or team controls it. There’s no CEO to fire, no boardroom drama, not strange tweets, no earnings calls where bad news tanks the price overnight. It’s powered by a global network of miners and nodes, secured by proof-of-work, and it’s been battle-tested for over a decade.

Compare that to holding an individual stock or even another crypto project. With stocks, you’re betting on leadership teams, market conditions, regulations, and a whole host of risks that Bitcoin sidesteps. Sure, BTC has its volatility, but it’s arguably lower risk in the long run because it’s not reliant on human error or corporate mismanagement. You can even hold it easily through ETFs now, like IBIT or others, without the hassle of self-custody if that’s not your thing.

So, here’s the key question: If your investment is underperforming Bitcoin on that TICKER/BTC chart, why take the extra risk? Why gamble on a CEO’s decisions or a company’s execution when you could just hold BTC and capture similar (or better) upside with less downside exposure? I’ve seen too many hyped stocks or altcoins pump hard only to crash when reality sets in—meanwhile, Bitcoin keeps grinding higher as adoption grows.

My Take: Keep It Simple and Stack Sats

This isn’t financial advice (always do your own research), but from my experience in high-stakes business environments, simplicity wins. I’ve managed multi-billion-dollar deals in renewable energy, where overcomplicating things leads to waste and missed opportunities, poor management decisions can cost billions. The same applies here: Use the TICKER/BTC view as your reality check. If something can’t beat Bitcoin over a reasonable timeframe—say, 6-12 months—why invest there vs holding BTC?

It’s freed up my thinking on trades. No more FOMO into the next shiny thing without this comparison. And remember, with Bitcoin, you’re not betting on a team; you’re betting on the most secure financial network and largest digital store of value in the world.

What do you think? Try this TradingView trick with your favourite investments? Drop a comment below with your experiences, or share a ticker that’s actually outperforming BTC right now—I’d love to hear about it. If you found this helpful, subscribe to my substack for more tips on productivity, investing, and life optimisation. You can also connect with me on LinkedIn or Twitter for real-time thoughts.

Until next time, invest smart and remember money = freedom.

Charles