Bitcoin and XRP Beat S&P 500 in Five-Year Crypto Test
24/7 Wall St. reported that a $1,000 investment in Bitcoin made on October 27, 2021, grew to approximately $1,366, a 36.6% gain, outperforming the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust over the same period. The analysis, led by editor Sam Daodu, compared the performance of Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Solana against a U.S. equity index fund after investors bought near market peaks in late 2021.
24/7 Wall St. reported that a $1,000 investment in Bitcoin made on October 27, 2021, grew to approximately $1,366, a 36.6% gain, outperforming the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust over the same period. The analysis, led by editor Sam Daodu, compared the performance of Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Solana against a U.S. equity index fund after investors bought near market peaks in late 2021.
The study found that while Bitcoin and XRP delivered positive returns, Ethereum and Solana lost significant value. A $1,000 stake in XRP rose to about $1,295, a 29.5% increase. In contrast, Ethereum fell 41.1% to roughly $589, and Solana dropped 45.1% to approximately $549. For context, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust closed at $459 in October 2021 and reached $760 by October 23, 2026. With dividends reinvested, a $1,000 investment in the ETF grew to about $1,770, representing a 77.0% total return.
Volatility defined the cryptocurrency experience. Bitcoin hit a low of $17,698 in June 2022, reducing the initial investment to about $302 before surging to an all-time high in October 2025. Solana’s decline was sharper, falling to $8.12 in December 2022, which cut the investment value to about $44. Solana later rebounded to $295 in January 2025.
The report noted that an equal split of $250 across all four coins would have resulted in a total value of about $950 based on recent prices. This outcome shows that the gains from Bitcoin and XRP did not fully offset the losses from Ethereum and Solana. To break even from their October 2021 prices, Ethereum would need to rise about 70% to surpass $3,954, while Solana would need to increase by about 83% to exceed $185.
A dollar-cost averaging strategy offered an alternative path for Bitcoin investors. By investing $200 at the end of each October from 2021 through 2025, an investor would have accumulated coins at varying prices, including near the market low in 2022. Based on recent prices, those five monthly investments would be worth about $1,880, outperforming the single $1,366 lump-sum investment made in October 2021.