Gold and Bitcoin

Coursera MOOC / Non-credit USD 49

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About this course

Gold and Bitcoin demystifies two monetary assets with data. You’ll learn how bitcoin works—blockchains, hashing, mining, keys, and transactions—and why decentralization matters. Then we compare gold and bitcoin where they are similar—scarcity, low inflation, high production cost, and absent cash flows—and where they diverge: custody, divisibility, auditability, settlement, censorship resistance, volatility, market size, and institutional adoption. We connect market structure to portfolio design, showing when each asset helps during equity drawdowns or inflation shocks. You’ll also understand today’s price drivers: financialization (ETFs, tokenized gold), central-bank accumulation, de-dollarization, and reserve-currency politics, plus a policy wildcard—potential Basel III treatment of gold as a high-quality liquid asset. Finally, we confront tail risks: bitcoin’s 51% and quantum threats and gold’s technological supply shocks (advanced extraction, modern alchemy, and off-world sources). Throughout, we use the golden-constant and Golden Dilemma frameworks to anchor valuation and build scenarios. Leave with clear, evidence-based answers and practical allocation tools you can apply immediately.

What you'll learn

How bitcoin works at a technical level, including blockchains, hashing, mining, cryptographic keys, and transaction mechanics
The similarities between gold and bitcoin: scarcity, low inflation rates, high production costs, and lack of cash flows
Key differences in custody methods, divisibility, auditability, settlement times, censorship resistance, volatility patterns, market capitalization, and institutional adoption
How market structure connects to portfolio allocation and when each asset performs during equity drawdowns or inflation shocks
Current price drivers including financialization through ETFs and tokenization, central-bank accumulation patterns, and de-dollarization trends
Tail risks facing each asset: bitcoin's 51% attack and quantum computing vulnerabilities, and gold's supply shock scenarios from advanced extraction or asteroid mining
Valuation frameworks including the golden-constant and Golden Dilemma models for building allocation scenarios

Course objectives

Demystify bitcoin's technical foundations and why decentralization matters for monetary assets
Build evidence-based comparisons between gold and bitcoin across multiple analytical dimensions
Connect market dynamics and structural forces to practical portfolio design decisions
Evaluate contemporary policy developments and their impact on both assets
Assess long-term threats and scenario planning for monetary asset allocation