If you had $1,000 to invest ten years ago, the choices available might have seemed overwhelming. Between stocks, cryptocurrencies, and traditional assets like gold, the options were many. But how do those investments compare today? Let’s take a look at how these different asset classes have performed over the past decade.
In September 2014, Bitcoin was hovering around $400. If you’d put $1,000 into Bitcoin at that time, today you’d be sitting on a massive return of about 16,300%. That’s $164,000 from an initial $1,000 investment.
Meanwhile, other cryptocurrencies, like XRP and Dogecoin, have seen similarly incredible growth. XRP was worth less than half a cent at the time, and an investment back then would have grown by about 13,200%. As for Dogecoin, its meme origins didn’t stop it from becoming one of the top performers—your $1,000 investment in 2014 would have skyrocketed by around 43,650%, turning into over $437,500 today.
Gold, a traditional safe haven, has had a much more modest run. If you had invested $1,000 in physical gold, you’d be up around 95%, with your investment worth just under $2,000 today. It’s steady, but in no way comparable to the exponential growth seen in cryptocurrencies.
Stocks, particularly those of tech giants, tell another story. The S&P 500 index would have given you a return of about 190%, turning your $1,000 into $2,900. However, some individual tech companies performed far better. NVIDIA, for instance, has seen incredible growth. If you had invested in NVIDIA back in 2014, your $1,000 would be worth around $310,000 today, up 30,900%. Other big names like Microsoft (up 838%), Google (up 1,481%), and Apple (up 826%) have also produced solid returns.
While crypto has certainly offered the highest returns, it’s not without its risks. But the same could be said for stocks – particularly when you’re relying on one company to outperform the market. NVIDIA’s growth may be impressive, but there’s no guarantee that any single stock will perform like that over the next decade.
Diversification: The Safer Bet?
Whether you were holding Bitcoin, stocks, or even gold, the reality is that long-term investing generally pays off. While there’s no crystal ball for the future, a diversified approach could be the most practical strategy for those who want to avoid putting all their eggs in one basket. The high returns from crypto might be tempting, but investing in multiple assets – whether stocks, cryptocurrencies, or traditional ones like gold – could offer a balance between potential rewards and risks.
In the end, while it’s clear that all of these investments would have made you a significant profit over the past decade, it’s impossible to predict which asset will outperform the others over the next ten years. What we do know is that time tends to reward patience, and a mix of different investments might be the best way to navigate whatever the next decade brings.
