The World Bank doctor is in, and he’s got some bad news.
The world economy is on course for a 2.3% growth, down from 2.7% in 2024. And hey, growth is good, right? Except that in this case, 2.3% is the weakest performance in 17 years. The only time when this was worse was during outright recessions.
And even that hides some uncomfortable realities; the low growth rates aren’t distributed evenly, with many developing economies perilously close to recession already.
In fact, Bitcoin could be on pace to rival gold’s massive market cap and serve as one of the linchpins of the world economy moving forward.
The bank’s own analysis points to two primary causes.
Trade discord, particularly over tariffs, are one of the main contributing factors. There’s been a gradual slowdown in global trade growth for a while now:
But trade discord has more recently been fueled by tariffs. In particular, US tariffs. Largely because of US tariffs (and tariff uncertainty), world trade volumes are projected to rise just 1.8%, less than half of the pre-pandemic average.
Tariffs act as trade barriers, and have intensified geopolitical risk and discouraged investment, leading to a decline in private sector confidence across the board.
Having a large economy hasn’t completely eliminated the effects of the slowdown, either. Major economies such as the U.S. (1.4% growth forecast) and the Eurozone (0.9–1.2%) are losing steam fast. The World Bank warned that the economy may enter a prolonged slump without coordinated policy responses and de-escalation of trade wars.
And the impacts of that slump won’t be felt evenly.
Developing countries are bearing the brunt of this slowdown:
Africa and Latin America, in particular, face debt crises, sluggish investment, and inflationary pressures, even as their populations are set to explode.
For instance, sub-Saharan Africa is expected to see a nearly 20% population growth by the end of the decade.
The report highlights that over 50% of low-income countries are now at high risk of debt distress.
Compounding the issue are higher interest rates in advanced economies, which draw capital away from emerging markets.
Without structural reforms, new investment in infrastructure, and better access to capital markets, these economies may remain stuck in low-growth traps. And this would weaken the impact of strong economies on the global outlook and further destabilizing global economic prospects.
Traditionally, gold has been the go-to safe haven during periods of economic uncertainty.
But this time, Bitcoin is joining it.
Annual average gold prices are expected to reach a record high this year, supported by safe haven flows, before plateauing in 2026-27.
Add in the success of $BTC ETFs, with over $40B in net inflows since launching last year, and the intersection of crypto and tradfi is becoming ever more apparent.
Bitcoin is increasingly seen as a hedge not just against inflation, but against slow growth and systemic risk. And note that adoption isn’t limited to economically prosperous countries.
How can you prepare for both a global slowdown and crypto growth? It all starts with your crypto wallet.
Best Wallet provides a simple, seamless crypto wallet that doesn’t skimp on security and comes loaded with features: biometric security, MPC, multi-wallet ecosystem, and even an upcoming Best Card to spend your crypto smoothly.
The $BEST token supercharges the whole thing by lowering transaction fees, increasing staking rewards, and generally improving overall wallet utility.
Given the broader crypto adoption trends, it’s no surprise that the non-custodial crypto wallet market has grown to $11B – and Best Wallet is on course to capture the lion’s share.
While Bitcoin can’t reverse slowing GDP or restart global trade on its own, it may play a critical hedging role in what’s shaping up to be the weakest economic decade in over 60 years.
Bitcoin is uniquely positioned alongside gold as a pillar of store-of-value investing. With central banks limited in their ability to stimulate due to high debt (the US national debt could hit nearly $35T within months) and persistent inflation, market participants are turning to assets outside the traditional system.
Do your own research and come to your own conclusions. This isn’t financial advice.
But get a crypto wallet, just in case.
