If you had invested $1,000 across these six popular assets at the stroke of New Year’s Eve 2020, the results five years later would tell a story of dramatic highs, stubborn comebacks, and one unfortunate fairy tale.
Ethereum ballooned, burst, and ballooned again; Apple flexed its AI muscles; Amazon nursed a 2022 hangover; Nasdaq quietly outperformed most of its flashier relatives; gold finally remembered it’s supposed to hedge inflation; and poor Disney kept searching for its happily‑ever‑after.
Method in the Madness
- Entry ticket: $1 000 invested at each asset’s 31 Dec 2020 close
- Checkpoints: Year-end closes plus 18 Jul 2025
- Math: Units = $1 000 ÷ price; Value = units × price; ROI as a percent
- Data pads: Macrotrends, CoinMarketCap, CoinGecko
Scoreboard Snapshot (July 2025)
| Asset | Value | ROI |
| Ethereum (ETH) | $4,719 | +372 % |
| Apple (AAPL) | $1,630 | +63 % |
| Nasdaq QQQ | $1,839 | +84 % |
| Amazon (AMZN) | $1,389 | +39 % |
| SPDR Gold (GLD) | $1,729 | +73 % |
| Disney (DIS) | $ 681 | −32 % |
Ethereum (ETH)—The drama queen
- 2021: A 4× moonshot (+399%) had crypto Twitter buying laser‑eye profile pics.
- 2022: Winter came; ROI collapsed to +62%.
- 2023‑2024: The Shanghai upgrade, ETF whispers, and a sprinkling of “Number go up” juju hauled ETH back to +352%.
- 2025: Hovering near +372%—still the family millionaire.
Moral: Crypto doesn’t do “slow and steady.” It does “hold onto your hats and pray.”
Apple (AAPL)—The teflon titan
- Sidestepped 2022’s bear smackdown, then surfed the AI hardware wave.
- Climbed 93% at New Year 2024, trimmed to +63% after a mid‑2025 tech wobble.
Moral: Even Big Tech isn’t immune to faceplants.
Nasdaq (QQQ)—The smoothed‑out surfer
Less heart‑attack‑inducing than picking single stocks.
- 2022: Down -14.1% (not great, but better than Amazon’s nosedive).
- 2025: Sitting pretty at 83.9% total returns.
Outpaced Amazon, gold, and (mercifully) Disney without smelling like gamer sweat.
Moral: Sometimes, boring wins.
Amazon (AMZN)—The rebuilding retailer
- 2021: Barely moved (2.4%).
- 2022: cloud‑cost cuts kneecapped the share price (ROI −48 %).
- 2023-2025: Recovered… kinda (39% total). Still, that 2022 scar runs deep.
Moral: Always expect the unexpected.
Gold (GLD)—The slow‑burn show‑off
- Two yawner years, then inflation headlines turned bullion bougie.
- +73 % ROI proves slow and shiny sometimes beats fast and furry‑ous.
Moral: Even old-school assets can surprise you.
Disney (DIS)—The tragic comedy
Oh, Disney. The House of Mouse became the House of Loss. Pandemic park woes, streaming bleeding cash, activist drama: pick your poison.
- 2022: Down -52%. Yikes.
- 2025: Still underwater (-31.9%).
Moral: Nostalgia doesn’t pay the bills.
Five Flashy Takeaways
- Crypto roller coasters print extreme compounding and extreme headaches. Strap in or stay out.
- Index ETFs (hello, QQQ) quietly grind out wins while you’re busy doom‑scrolling altcoin charts.
- Blue‑chip tech isn’t equal. Apple wields pricing power; Amazon’s margins are still on keto.
- Gold hedges—but only on its own schedule. Patience required; smugness optional.
- Diversification beats Disneyfication. A single dud can sink morale (and returns) if you’re all‑in.
The Final tally—Which asset came out on top?
Let’s break down the winners and “please try harder” participants:
- Ethereum—The volatile champion, delivering explosive gains and heartburn.
- Gold—The sleeper pick that finally woke up in style.
- Nasdaq—Steady, unflashy, and somehow ahead of most.
- Apple—Dependable as always, if not quite thrilling.
- Amazon—The “almost” comeback story (we’re rooting for you, buddy).
- Disney—At this point, even a meme coin might’ve treated you better.
So next New Year’s Eve, before uncorking the bubbly, ask yourself: “Am I playing hero ball… or drafting the whole team?” Your 2029 self may thank you.
