Bitcoin's price compared to gold has sunk to its lowest since mid-2021 as Russia dispatches troops into Ukraine

• Bitcoin's price compared to gold has sunk amid the escalating conflict in Ukraine.
• A single bitcoin is now worth about 19 ounces of gold, Bloomberg data showed.

New data show bitcoin's price compared to gold has sunk to its lowest point since the middle of 2021 as Russia-Ukraine tensions reach new heights.

According to data from Bloomberg, a single bitcoin is now worth about 19 ounces of gold — the same price as in July 2021 when the cryptocurrency sank amid a regulatory crackdown in China.

The recent bitcoin price drop has been stoked by the escalating conflict in eastern Europe. Russia reportedly deployed its forces to pro-Kremlin areas of Ukraine late Monday. The US, European Union, and the UK condemned Russia's recognition of the areas as independent states rather than parts of Ukraine and promised economic sanctions.

The conflict spurred a broad market slump early Tuesday with investors seeking less risky assets such as gold. Meanwhile, bitcoin continued to drop Tuesday and has fallen about 20% so far this year, trading below $38,000.

In October last year, bitcoin surged above $60,000 as investors turned to the cryptocurrency as a hedge against inflation, which has been at its highest in decades. At the time, a single bitcoin was worth a record high of 37 ounces of gold, Bloomberg reported.

Though bitcoin has been subject to extreme volatility since its inception more than a decade ago, some say the cryptocurrency has prospects as a store of value, similar to gold, which is viewed as a safe-haven for risk-averse investors.

Earlier this year, Goldman Sachs analysts predicted the cryptocurrency could surge past $100,000 as broad crypto adoption leads bitcoin to steal store-of-value market share from gold.