Bitcoin as the core position in crypto portfolios: rationale and implications

If you've spent any time in crypto beyond the top handful of coins, you probably have a few scars to show for it. Pretty much everyone in the space has taken a long shot on a token that looked like the future of finance, only to see it crater and never recover. More than 53% of all crypto tokens launched since 2021 are now completely defunct, according to CoinGecko's research. There's a simpler path that many investors have decided to take in response, and it's to make Bitcoin the biggest and most sacred asset in their crypto portfolio. For what it's worth, it's the approach that I've decided to use. Here's why. The altcoin landscape is a minefield. Of the 20 million or so tokens that were launched between mid-2021 and late 2025, more than half have failed. That cohort includes far more than just meme coins and obvious pump-and-dump scams. The median new token launched in 2025 dropped more than 70% from its debut price, and, importantly, falling by that much isn't even enough to mark a token as being dead, as many of the market's leaders, including Bitcoin, have survived such drops multiple times only to go on and reach new highs. In short, crypto is an incredibly risky sector, and picking the winners is very difficult to do reliably. And that's why many investors swear off entire groups of assets that are the least likely to survive, like altcoins, which is a name for all cryptos not Bitcoin. The odds are simply too long to be approachable compared to other assets. Bitcoin isn't perfect, but it has earned its reputation. In crypto, there's a saying: Just stay calm and stack sats. 'Sats' in this case refers to satoshis, the smallest indivisible quantity of Bitcoin that exists. Given how poorly altcoins tend to perform, it makes sense that investors would eschew them. But why are people so enthusiastic about accumulating Bitcoin? Only 21 million BTC will ever exist, and everyone from financial institutions to Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) want in, putting pressure on its price by fighting over the available supply. Furthermore, over the past decade, Bitcoin's compound annual growth rate (CAGR) has been approximately 84%, vastly outperforming index funds as well as gold. It could thus grow at a fraction of its historical annual rate and still be a very good investment. Some investment strategists at major banks caution that the coin's high returns are unlikely to repeat, projecting annualized gains of roughly 3% to 10% over the next decade. But even at the lower end, its returns compare very favorably to the expected return of most altcoins, which is zero. So if you're looking to build a better crypto portfolio, Bitcoin should be your core position, with perhaps as much of an allocation as 85%. (Though your full portfolio should be diversified beyond crypto.) This approach doesn't guarantee success, but it's certainly a lot more sensible than gambling on the alternatives.