JPMorgan has shared a note with clients that suggests bitcoin’s recent price rise that saw its total market capitalization surpass the $1 trillion mark again was predominantly driven by institutional investors looking for a hedge against inflation, and choosing BTC over gold.

Bitcoin, according to CryptoCompare data, is now trading above $55,000 after starting the week close to the $45,000 mark. The cryptocurrency is now close to its all-time high of $64,000 seen earlier this year

The note, as Markets Insider reports, cites three main reasons behind the flagship cryptocurrency’s rally, one of them being investors moving from gold to BTC:

Institutional investors appear to be returning to bitcoin perhaps seeing it as a better inflation hedge than gold.

According to the bank’s analysts, gold has been failing to act as a reliable inflation hedge over the last few months, and as such investors are moving in a different direction. Since the beginning of the year, the report notes, more than $10 billion flowed out of gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs), while more than $20 billion moved to bitcoin funds.

Those funds moving into BTC helped the cryptocurrency’s market capitalization grow, and its market share of the cryptocurrency space increasing. Per JPMorgan, bitcoin’s increased market share “is a healthy development as it is more likely to reflect institutional participation than smaller cryptocurrencies.”

JPMorgan’s analyst added that while bitcoin is still below its all-time high, it’s up 86% year-to-date. Gold, on the other hand, is down 7% so far this year. Other reasons JPMorgan cited for BTC’s rise included assurances from U.S. policymakers that the country would not follow China in banning crypto, and a rise in Lightning Network payments supported by El Salvador’s adoption.

As CryptoGlobe reported, the EO and chief investment officer of Soros Fund, Dawn Fitzpatrick, has revealed that the private investment firm with over $6 billion in assets under management holds “some” bitcoin, and sees it becoming mainstream.

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