Andy Schectman

The Global Rush For Physical Gold & Silver Is Going Into Overdrive | Andy Schectman

Unprecedented physical gold and silver demand is surging globally, evidenced by record COMEX deliveries and all-time high Chinese imports. Geopolitical shifts and de-dollarization are accelerating as nations repatriate gold reserves and central banks accumulate physical metal. Structural silver deficits are worsening due to declining legacy supply sources, inelastic industrial demand, and military munitions requirements.

Don’t Wait Longer: Gold Bull Market to Climb Over $6,000

Gold's recent price volatility is a structurally engineered shakeout designed to exploit retail investors rather than a true market reversal. Record physical deliveries and surging demand are creating severe liquidity issues and supply chain stress across the global precious metals market. Despite mainstream bearish narratives, bullish bank forecasts and institutional portfolio shifts indicate gold is poised to climb significantly higher.

The Dollar System Runs on Trust

Andy Schectman explains that trust, not just economics, is the core foundation of the global monetary system and U.S. dollar dominance. Countries are actively building alternative payment systems and increasing gold holdings as they lose confidence in U.S. institutions. Central bank gold accumulation signals a potential macroeconomic shift away from dollar dominance, creating bullish implications for gold investors.

The Petrodollar Is Losing Its Grip

The petrodollar system is weakening as fewer oil transactions are priced in US dollars, reducing global demand for the currency. Central banks worldwide are aggressively accumulating gold reserves, signaling a potential shift toward a more neutral global reserve system. Reduced recycling of petrodollars into US assets could fundamentally alter capital flows and impact dollar-denominated investments.

The Market Disagrees

Andy Schectman challenges the conventional narrative that rising interest rates should negatively impact gold prices. Central bank buying and robust physical demand are sending strong bullish signals that contradict traditional economic models. Investors should monitor the divergence between macroeconomic theory and real-world gold market indicators for strategic positioning.

They’re Lying: The Conventional Gold Thesis is Dead

Institutional capital is quietly rotating into physical gold and silver, driven by a systemic loss of trust in paper-based financial assets and sovereign debt. Geopolitical fragmentation, including the rise of BRICS and the erosion of the petrodollar, is structurally reshaping global trade away from U.S. dollar dependency. Misleading short-term price volatility masks underlying market stress, as smart money aggressively accumulates hard assets during retail panic selling.

Gold & Silver Market BREAKING Behind the Scenes | Andy Schectman

Physical gold and silver markets face rising strain as dealers encounter higher costs, tighter inventories, and increased operational risk. Large institutional players continue taking physical delivery, signaling a deepening disconnect between paper prices and real metal availability. Investors focused solely on price timing may miss the critical supply squeeze risk when accelerating demand outstrips physical access.

Are Gold & Silver Prices Now Too Low? | Andy Schectman

Gold and silver prices may be heavily discounted despite geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, presenting a potential buying opportunity for investors. Pre-1965 US coinage, commonly known as junk silver, is currently trading at the best value seen in Andy Schectman's entire professional career. Investors should consider the current price correction in precious metals as an optimal entry point before the next major macroeconomic breakout.

Here's The Latest Outlook From Lacy Hunt, Ed Dowd, Lyn Alden + A Dozen Other Experts

Highlights from the Spring 2026 Thoughtful Money conference featuring 15+ expert speakers discussing macroeconomic trends and recession risks. Lacy Hunt delivered the keynote address, followed by presentations from Ed Dowd, Luke Gromen, Brent Johnson, and Lyn Alden among others. Jeff Clark provided a bonus video focused specifically on gold and silver mining stocks for resource investors.

Gold & Silver About To Rally Higher Again? | Andy Schectman

Shanghai gold premiums signal strong Chinese demand, potentially driving next leg of precious metals bull market higher. Silver withdrawals exceeding deliveries suggest physical shortage dynamics are intensifying across global exchanges. Potential gold revaluation and dollar devaluation scenarios could dramatically impact mining equity valuations.

SILVER: Strong Hands Are Buying The Dip | Andy Schectman

• Top takeaway The guest argues margin hikes do not end bull markets in metals — they mark the point where the next leg higher becomes inevitable, flushing weak leveraged speculators and consolidating metal into strong institutional hands standing for delivery.
• The biggest one-day drop in silver was followed the next day by SLV's largest single-day metal inflow in years (~36.3M new shares, roughly 33M ounces), which the guest reads as institutions using the forced liquidation to source physical at a discount.
• The March silver contract carries ~80,500 open contracts (about 402M oz of paper) against COMEX registered of just 103.5M oz; even 10–20% standing for delivery would force backwardation or pull metal out of the eligible category.
• The guest says the global metals market is fracturing as New York, London and Shanghai diverge, and that BRICS nations are settling trade imbalances in gold via multi-jurisdictional vaults (Moscow, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia), eroding dollar/Treasury reserve status.
• Miles Franklin did roughly $900M in sales in 2025 and ~$300M in January 2026; the guest urges retail investors to preposition physical during calm windows because dealers, depositories, IRA custodians and shipping cannot scale instantly when dislocations hit.

Margin hikes in silver flush leveraged speculators but don't end bull markets — physical holders absorb metal at discounts, putting it into stronger institutional hands. March silver contracts carry 400M oz of open interest against 103.5M oz registered at COMEX, signaling major delivery pressure if even small shares stand. The largest one-day silver drop ever was followed by 33M oz flowing into SLV — institutional buyers scooping discounted physical from forced sellers. BRICS nations are building gold-backed payment systems to settle trade imbalances outside the dollar, chipping away at US Treasury reserve demand. Precious metals dealers, depositories, and IRA custodians are overwhelmed by volume, so investors should pre-position holdings before demand surges cause multi-week delays.

Silver Market Getting Set Free | Andy Schectman

• Top takeaway Schectman argues silver is 'being set free from paper suppression' as a paper-based pricing system collides with physical reality, and urges holders not to let anyone talk them out of their position.
• He points to TD Bank's failed silver short — a published $45 target followed by a stop-out near $92, reportedly costing around $200 million — as evidence that large banks are trapped and forced into 'accidents' by shorting in backwardation.
• He cites record COMEX December deliveries of roughly 68 million ounces, lease rates jumping from a normal 0.25–0.5% to 8–9%, and structural deficits (a sixth straight year of declining mine supply, surging AI, photovoltaic and military demand) as evidence this is not a margin-driven 2011-style rally.
• He discusses a VanEck research paper arguing that if the dollar loses reserve status, gold could be valued at $39,000 against M0 or $184,000 against M2 per ounce, and frames the U.S. push to 'soft default' on reserve status as a deliberate policy aimed at fixing Triffin's dilemma.
• He warns listeners about AI-generated deepfake channels pushing bearish narratives on silver — fake Warren Buffett warnings, fabricated seizure stories, a fake Samsung-graphene story — and lists odd-weight 'crown guinea' coins and non-bullion premium pitches as red flags for predatory IRA dealers.

Silver's structural shortage is overwhelming paper pricing — COMEX booked its largest-ever December delivery and TD Bank got stopped out shorting a backwardated market. Banks are reportedly refusing wires to precious metals dealers; Andy frames deposits as unsecured loans and urges clients to move banks immediately if pressured. US Mint boxed Silver Eagles jumped from $95 to $173 — only bullion strikes compare cleanly to spot; proof and uncirculated coins carry collector premiums. Predatory dealer red flags: odd-weight coins like 1/3 oz 'rose crown guinea' and pressure to skip bullion — buy common bullion from major mints instead. AI deepfake channels (fake Buffett, fake O'Leary) push bearish silver narratives; VanEck's paper values gold at $39K–$184K/oz if the dollar loses reserve status.

Who's Buying All The Silver - Physical Market Dominating | Andy Schectman

• Top takeaway Andy argues the December 2025 COMEX deliveries — 3.7M oz gold and 64.7M oz silver, the largest December influx in Comex history — show that whoever is taking delivery is doing it deliberately, and that prices will go much higher, with volatility, until massive new supply arrives.
• Andy describes record physical delivery demand continuing into the first days of January 2026 (roughly 35M oz of silver delivered in a non-delivery month) and warns that tight institutional-level availability will cascade into the retail market, where products become hard to source at reasonable premiums.
• Andy explains that junk silver premiums collapsed because refiners got margin-called on hedge shorts as silver rallied, forcing them to stop accepting new material; he predicts premiums will 'slingshot' back up once the overhang clears and advises clients not to reposition out of junk silver.
• Andy points to the Shanghai premium and silver lease rates of roughly 8–9% (versus historical fractions of 1%) as evidence that the East is doing real price discovery while the West still prices paper, arguing that when the two markets stop agreeing the physical market will 'overrule' the paper market in a disorderly move.
• Andy cites the latest CFTC Bank Participation Report showing non-US banks net short 206M oz of silver (about 33% of open interest) with what he calls 'biblical' unrealized losses, while US banks flipped net long — a divergence he says could end in a UBS-style failure to deliver and broader systemic contagion.

COMEX silver deliveries hit a record 100 million ounces in five weeks, exposing a paper-versus-physical split Andy Schectman says is unprecedented. Refiners are being margin-called as silver climbs, forcing them to stop buying 90% silver coinage and pushing junk-silver premiums to unusual lows. Schectman expects depressed junk-silver premiums to snap back once refiners work through the supply glut, calling the dislocation a temporary gift. Lease rates spiked from under 1% to as high as 30%, while Shanghai keeps pricing metals above Western spot, both signaling physical-market leadership. He cites the CFTC Bank Participation Report: US banks net long, non-US banks net short ~206 million ounces — a 'time bomb' if shorts fail.

Retail Silver Supply Getting Cleaned Out | Andy Schectman

• Top takeaway Schectman argues 2025 was "the year of the delivery" — December 2025 set an all-time high with about 63 million ounces of silver delivered in a single month, and the US has now seen 13-14 straight months of record deliveries, a pattern he calls fundamentally different from the 1980 and 2011 spikes because sovereign entities, central banks, and family offices are standing for delivery and US banks are now reportedly net long silver rather than short.
• He characterizes the CME/COMEX's two recent margin hikes (each roughly 30%, done in thin holiday trading) as "coordinated pickpocketing" to liquidate leveraged longs, but argues this cycle is different from 2011 because the deep-pocketed buyers (sovereigns, Tesla, Samsung, solar-panel makers) simply take the metal on the dips and the price snaps back.
• Reading from the January 5 delivery report, he highlights that Deutsche Bank issued 3.27 million ounces of silver while JP Morgan took 2.26 million ounces for a customer account and Citi took 2.16 million ounces for its house account, and frames this as the smartest, best-connected institutions prioritizing physical metal over warrants because they do not trust future availability.
• On the retail supply chain, he says Miles Franklin is "frightened" by sourcing difficulty, has almost no American Silver Eagles, sold out of the 2026 kangaroos, and that 100-ounce bars are scarce because dealers will not risk the tariff threat from Canada and Switzerland; he expects premiums to rise significantly as the public wakes up to the squeeze.
• On geopolitics, he flags China's upcoming silver export limits and reports China is about to lead the first-ever BRICS military exercise (naval drills off South Africa with Russia and Iran), arguing the message is far from routine and that Trump's warnings to Venezuela, Cuba, Colombia, and Nigeria may be aimed at BRICS countries that want to sell oil outside the dollar.

Retail silver supply is tightening: Silver Eagles are nearly sold out, junk silver premiums are climbing, and 100oz bars are scarce from tariff-driven import hesitation. COMEX silver deliveries have set records for 13 straight months — December alone saw nearly 63 million ounces delivered, signaling sovereign-level accumulation rather than retail speculation. CME margin hikes during silver rallies act as a coordinated shakeout of leveraged longs — but deep-pocketed buyers step in to absorb discounted metal and price snaps back. JP Morgan and Citibank are taking house delivery of silver from Deutsche Bank, signaling US banks are now positioning net-long on physical rather than trusting future availability. Geopolitical realignments — Venezuela intervention, BRICS military drills, and China's export curbs — are accelerating the drain on US silver inventories.