January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany, commemorates the moment when the Magi presented gold to Christ—not as a symbol of luxury, but as recognition of kingship, authority, and protection. In Christian tradition, St. Joseph became the guardian of that gold, entrusted with safeguarding the Holy Family during a time of political danger and forced displacement.

That detail matters today.

Because once again, gold is re-emerging at a moment when families, institutions, and nations sense that something in the existing order is no longer stable.

As 2026 begins, financial markets are behaving in ways that directly contradict conventional wisdom. After a strong 2025—one in which gold and silver ranked among the top-performing assets—markets “should” be seeing selling pressure. Investors typically reduce exposure to last year’s winners in January, rotating into lagging assets or taking gains once tax calendars reset.

Instead, demand for gold and silver is accelerating.

Even more striking is where that demand is coming from. Governments and institutions are not seeking paper exposure or financial substitutes. They are securing physical supply. Reports tied to Venezuela indicate that the U.S. Department of Defense has invested billions to secure silver smelting capacity in Latin America, following silver’s designation as a strategically critical mineral. This mirrors the behavior of central banks across the world, which have been quietly selling financial assets and accumulating physical gold at record levels.

This distinction matters. Financial products tied to gold and silver are simply claims on metal, I.e. derivatives. Physical metal is ownership. Central banks and defense agencies understand and appreciate the enormous difference, and their actions are speaking louder than official reassurances ever could.

At the same time, a structural supply crisis is forming—particularly in silver. Emerging technologies are dramatically increasing industrial demand. Samsung is reportedly on the verge of releasing a battery technology capable of charging electric vehicles in minutes while delivering ranges exceeding 500 miles. Even a modest market share for such a product could consume the entirety of annual mineable silver supply. And that demand would exist on top of silver’s already critical role in solar energy, water filtration, electronics, healthcare, and communications infrastructure that are already straining supply as notch the sixth consecutive year where demand for silver exceeds supply - buffers are shrinking and that is a positive for the price of silver looking ahead.

Silver cannot simply be replaced as it is critical to the modern era’s most important industries from health care, to water purification, to electronics if virtually every flavor. When shortages appear, production stops.

These realities confirm what many have warned about for years: the global financial system is undergoing a transition away from confidence-based financial instruments toward tangible assets with no counterparty risk. Central banks have already moved. Governments are following. Yet many American households are still being told to avoid physical gold and silver entirely.

That contradiction is becoming harder for financial advisory firms to defend.

In recent months, even the most influential figures in global finance have begun acknowledging what historical data has long shown. Ray Dalio has stated that a fifteen percent allocation to gold may be necessary to optimize portfolio performance, based on U.S. financial history going back to 1933. Trillion dollar asset manager Morgan Stanley’s Chief Strategist Mike Wilson has pointed to 20% gold allocations as being optimal - our number exactly when measuring from 1971, when gold was first allowed to trade freely. When examining data from this century, the optimal allocation of gokd in portfolios rises even higher to 25%.

Most families will not reach those levels—and that is not the point. The point is that near-zero exposure to physical gold and silver during a period of historic debt expansion and monetary instability is a position history consistently punishes.

Even small shifts in allocation preferences would have massive consequences. If Western investors sought to allocate just two percent of assets to gold—a figure still far below historical optimization—the resulting demand would likely overwhelm available supply. Yet Americans are being told that one or two percent is “enough,” despite the fact that such allocations failed to protect wealth during when prior credit bubbles like we have today burst including the Great Depression, the dot-com collapse, and the 2008 financial crisis.

Gold does not offer guarantees.

Its price can move lower.

But risk management is not about perfection; it is about survivability. If gold declines while held as a hedge, it typically coincides with strength in other assets. If, however, the laws of finance still apply—if debt cycles still resolve the way they consistently have throughout history —then physical gold and silver may serve as a form of financial fire protection when paper assets falter.

Markets are already reflecting this reality. Gold has moved beyond $4,000 an ounce. Silver has surged past $70, briefly touching $80. Pullbacks may occur, but metals are not acquired for short-term speculation. They are acquired because history shows that when confidence breaks, real assets remain.

Physical ownership is the dividing line. Exchange-traded products depend on intermediaries and promises. Physical gold and silver eliminate that dependency.

For retirement accounts in particular, direct ownership within a properly structured framework can offer protection at a cost lower than many paper alternatives at 10 basis points annually in our platform, while preserving true control over the asset. Many investors have 20% or more of their wealth in retirement plans - reallocating to gold within retirement plans does not trigger any taxable event and it does not require any cash to buy your metals - it is simply a conversation from paper assets into physical metal.

The message from the markets is no longer subtle. The cost of protection is rising, and those paying attention are acting accordingly.

This is not a moment for panic—but it is a moment for decisive action. 

Gold is warning us.

God Bless and God Bless America

*Past performance is not indicative of future results.