The Secret War on Silver Prices

You've probably heard a lot about gold in the past year, but did you know that something equally important is happening in the silver market? I don't know if you follow silver. >> Silver. >> Silver. Silver. Silver. Investors have been buying silver in record amounts, and prices have been fluctuating wildly. Why? When we understand what's going on with silver, it uncovers a deeper story about government suppression, military power, and eroding trust in Western financial systems. Silver is the canary in the coal mine for some profound issues. Let's get into it. To understand silver, we first need to understand how it's different from gold. Both silver and gold have been used as stores of value for thousands of years. They are both thought of as stable investments through economic downturns and periods of inflation, meaning they're expected to hold their value better than currencies and other assets. The main difference is that silver is also a crucial component in modern industries. This is because of its amazing electrical and thermal conductivity, and also its antimicrobial properties. Silver is a critical component in circuit boards, smartphones, solar panels, medical instruments, plumbing, car engines, EVs, chemical manufacturing, batteries, and many other applications as well. Now, gold is useful as well, but gold's main value comes from the fact that it's so rare, and it doesn't corrode or tarnish over time. Silver, on the other hand, is more of a hybrid. Yes, it's a precious metal, but it's also a practical and versatile material, essential to everyday technologies and industries. But, silver is also one of the most manipulated commodities in the world. >> [music] >> Large financial institutions and governments are accused of keeping its price artificially low. Why would they want to keep the silver price artificially low? There's a famous quote from historian Arthur Herman. World War II was won not just on the battlefield, but in the factories. We've already mentioned how important silver is for industrial applications, everything from electronics to medical to water purification. But, it's also crucial to military and aerospace technology. Silver is indispensable in advanced defense systems, weaponry, and space technologies. Have you ever heard of the United States Space Force, established in 2019? Space is quickly becoming a crucial part of the military. It's used for satellites that provide GPS, communication, surveillance, and intelligence. Ever wonder how Trump was able to hit all those Iranian targets in the 12-day war? Yep, you guessed it, satellites. Many modern weapons depend on satellites to accurately hit targets. Silver is used in space because it's the best metal for carrying electricity, which helps satellites and spacecraft run efficiently with limited power. It also spreads heat extremely well, preventing delicate electronics from overheating or freezing in space's extreme temperatures. [music] But, look at this. This is the critical minerals list published by the Department of Energy to identify metals and minerals that are essential for national security, economic stability, [music] and energy production. And before 2025, there was no mention of silver. Weird, huh? The government [music] has a vested interest in keeping the price of silver as low as possible, so that it can keep its industries as cost-effective as possible and keep steady supplies of cheap silver for critical military applications. As geopolitical tensions around the world continue to rise, countries are racing to build up their domestic industrial capability. To be a strong nation, America must be a manufacturing nation. We are bringing it back. Silver is becoming more important than ever. Keeping the price of silver low is crucial to building an effective military that's war-ready. So, how have governments been suppressing the price of silver? Unlike gold, which central [music] banks openly buy, silver is mainly traded through contracts rather than physical ownership. This is known as [music] the paper silver market. Paper silver is silver that's traded as contracts or promises instead of actual physical silver you can hold. The COMEX, the largest paper metals market in the world, which is based in New York, allows banks to sell massive amounts of paper silver without having the actual physical silver to back it up. The paper silver supply far exceeds the amount of actual physical silver available. For every physical ounce of silver, there are often 100 or more paper contracts. >> [snorts] >> This creates the illusion of abundance. It's classic supply and demand economics. Make it seem like the supply is plentiful and you can keep the prices low. Theoretically, physical shortages of silver should cause its price to rocket, but because silver contracts are settled in cash and no one ever sees the actual physical silver, the price is able to be kept down even when there are shortages. In 2020, JP Morgan were forced to pay a $920 million fine for manipulating silver. They were using what's known as spoofing tactics, which means placing large fake sell orders to drive prices down before buying at lower prices. Wasn't the government involved? No one can say for sure, but it's certainly not out of the question. The COMEX and the London Bullion Market Association or LBMA, which is the other largest metals markets, have also been known to suppress the ability of retailers to access silver during silver price surges. This happened in the 2021 silver squeeze movements, where they restricted silver buying to prevent buyers discovering its true price. But, look at this. In the past year, the price of silver has shot up. Their silver suppression tactics haven't been working. Why? For the first time, investors have been demanding delivery of physical silver instead of just the paper silver contracts. The financial systems of the West are no longer trusted on the world stage. Paper contracts aren't good enough anymore, and investors want their physical metal. On the 26th of February, 2022, in response to the invasion of Ukraine, President Biden blocked Russia from the SWIFT payment system. SWIFT is a global network that allows banks and financial institutions to securely send information and payment instructions to each other. SWIFT relies heavily on access to the US financial system, which means the US government can use it to impose sanctions on countries. When Biden blocked Russia from the SWIFT system, it spooked countries around the world. They started to wonder if US financial institutions were as trustworthy as they thought, and that trend has only accelerated under Trump with his madcap tariffs and aggressive foreign policy. As of April the 1st, India has said that it's done using the Western system. They will no longer use the LBMA benchmark to set the gold and silver prices. They're going to set their own price and their own exchange. And they just set the highest monthly import volume for silver ever recorded. The BRICS trade alliance is aiming to make its own precious metals exchange. When this comes online, the BRICS countries will finally have a say in the price of gold and silver. It's these countries that have been demanding the delivery of physical silver from the COMEX and LBMA, which has been making prices so volatile. They've been doing it gradually, so as not to crash the system. But it's like death by a million paper cuts. China has set up the Shanghai Gold Exchange as a rival metals market. It's been vacuuming up all the silver it can find. And since it's much closer to being 100% physically backed than the COMEX and LBMA, investors have been flocking in droves. They're basically undercutting the Western paper metals market by offering a safer, more stable, physically backed alternative. There's a new kid on the block. New York and London need to get used to it. It's all part of a wider geopolitical picture where BRICS countries, and particularly China, are using financial instruments to weaken the West's stranglehold over the economy. You can watch the video to the left of me here if you want to understand what's been going on in the gold market >> [music] >> and how China is weaponizing it. Or this video to the right if you want to understand how the US petrodollar controls the world and how that might be changing. Thanks for watching. See you in the next one.