Transcription
Who did it this month for 14 billion worth of gold? Stop looking at the price. It is the greatest tool of misdirection. Look at what the biggest, most well-funded, and well-informed traders in the globe are doing. Central banks, the commercial banks, and whoever is standing for delivery here. The delivery betrays the price. The delivery betrays everything cuz if it was just about price, then the central banks are no dummies. They wouldn't [music] be buying it. The Chinese are not dummies. They wouldn't be buying it. Central bank purchases that they only purchased 16 tons. World Gold Council says, "No, it's 15 times that much. What are you talking about?" 15 times that much. So, there's They're like it's 160 tons. Central banks have been buying in what is a inelastic manner. They don't care what the CPI is. They don't care what the employment numbers are. They don't care what anything is. Every single month they've been buying and they're using the price to misdirect. I don't think a gold revaluation is something that we should all count on. Got percent earlier saying, "I'm going to remonetize the balance sheet of the United States." Got Trump saying, "It's the golden era."
>> What do you think is drawing in that new crowd of people? Is it those high gold and silver prices that we were seeing toward the end or beginning of the year? Or is it more an understanding of what's behind those those price increases?
>> That's the bigger issue. It's not the prices. Prices are a tool of misdirection. That was the name of my presentation today. Prices misdirect. Um and I think instead fundamentals should be Fundamentals should be driving everything. Problem is the fundamentals are blurred and hidden by the mainstream who really don't talk about what's happening. I mean, I'll give you an example. In the month of June, we saw 14 billion dollars worth of gold delivered on COMEX. 14 billion delivered on COMEX. Now, not all of it left the COMEX market. It doesn't matter. This is a market that was typically predicated on on for decades on the belief or understanding that investors wouldn't stand for delivery. They would cash settle, they would roll forward, or they would exit the position. It was done to hedge, not to speculate, largely. A miner, as an example here at the conference, who has their production coming due, will forward sell it on Comex to hedge there. They're happy with the price, they'll hedge it. Or a company like mine who has 2 million oz of silver in a warehouse to sell will hedge the 2 million oz. It's not I'm not going to stand for delivery. I'm using it to offset risk. And when the the inventory is sold, then I I close out that position.
>> Headlines celebrate price moves, yet the market's most important signal is happening where almost nobody is looking. Andy Schectman notes that June recorded roughly 14 billion dollars in Comex gold deliveries, challenging a decades-old assumption that futures would rarely end in physical settlement. That divergence suggests institutional priorities may be shifting beneath the surface, while public attention stays fixed on charts. Long-term investors should watch delivery behavior, not daily volatility. Next, Andy Schectman exposes why physical demand keeps strengthening even when price action appears deceptively weak.
>> So, what we're seeing now is massive deliveries. And it's been going on for 18 straight months. In February, we saw 4.1 million oz of gold delivered for almost 20 billion dollars. For 18 straight months, every single month it's delivery, delivery, delivery, delivery, which is so far an outlier to anything I've seen in 35 years, and nobody on the mainstream talks about it. So, the public doesn't quite get it. I think it's less to do with the price of gold, in my mind, as someone who's watching it from this side, it's all about deliveries for the most in informed players in the world. But for people who are here for the first time, it's not that. I think it's a general sense of being uneasy with what's happening around the world. Um A lot of times you can't even articulate it. You feel this charge in the air that is uncomfortable, whether it be with what's happening geopolitically, wars around the world in particular in in the Ukraine and in Iran. Um maybe it's fiscal irresponsibility. Maybe people see that the dollar isn't going as far as a result of inflation. Um things are getting more expensive. Um I don't know. I I I think there is it there is an awakening largely because it just it just seems that for for the last 6 years everything's been a little inside out. Everything isn't just quiet and normal like it used to be. In fact, it just seems like every other day there's some event that that just makes me people stand back and take notice.
>> Markets may look calm, but persistent physical accumulation often signals concerns that prices alone cannot explain. According to Andy Schectman, 18 consecutive months of unusually large gold deliveries represent a pattern far outside historical norms, regardless of short-term market sentiment. Investors seeking to preserve purchasing power should pay attention when institutional behavior diverges from mainstream financial narratives. Next, Andy Schectman reveals why delivery trends matter far more than the headlines dominating financial television.
>> Maybe that's something to do with that that it's more about defensive posturing, looking at something that is often looked at as insurance, taking a look at it and opening your eyes to something other than the belief that the road to retirement is simply funded with mutual funds and stock certificates and you know, you look at the positioning on on the S&P 500 as an example. You have the entire market being held up by 10 stocks, and that's generous. It's more like seven. And at some point you have to realize that, you know, maybe this isn't super healthy. So, maybe I should take a look at putting a little bit of money on the sidelines or into something more of a of a risk-off and like like precious metals.
>> Yes, I think there's a lot of things under the surface that could make somebody feel like things are not quite right. And I like your theme of prices misdirection. I think we can maybe unpack that a little bit more because even at this event, I do find there is a lot of focus on price. Maybe people see this as more of a buying opportunity right now with prices lower, but there is still questions about well, why are they lower? What is going on? What's wrong with gold and silver?
>> You know, the big money doesn't care about price. You know, the Bank of International Settlements came out in February and commented on the price slam. And they said, "Look, this wasn't fundamental at all. This was structural. A lot of things happened at the same time at the end of the year, typically at the beginning of the year rather, you have what's called ETF rebalancing.
>> Most retirement portfolios look diversified until the same handful of stocks begin driving nearly every major index. What Andy Schectman is highlighting is that institutional buyers appear more interested in securing physical assets than reacting to short-term price swings or sentiment. That contrast challenges the assumption that lower prices automatically signal weaker demand. Investors focused only on performance charts may overlook the changing foundation beneath today's markets. Next, Andy Schectman unravels why a sharp price decline can coincide with exceptionally strong institutional demand.
>> ETFs that have gotten way out of whack, they have to rebalance according to their prospectus. Well, silver and gold have been going straight up month over month over month over month or week over week for sure into the last several weeks of the year. The ETFs got way out of whack. They had to be rebalanced the first week and it's a notorious time for commodity-backed ETFs that must be rebalanced. You know, there's going to be selling or in some cases, purchasing. In this case, wicked selling. But, the BIS more or less came out and said, which is the Bank of International Settlements, most powerful bank in the world, they said, "No, this was synthetic. This was This was structural. This wasn't fundamental because not only do the ETFs have to rebalance that first week, the CME Group, which is the COMEX, in their infinite wisdom, decided to hike margin rates by 300% into that event from early December until first week in January or so, margin rates went up 300%. And that means that's the money you have to have as collateral inside of your account in order to to speculate on these contracts. Now, if you're someone like myself or a mining company hedging, you still have to have the collateral up. If you are a speculator, same thing. To give you an idea what I mean by that, we'll typically have 2 million oz of silver in our warehouse. And in early December, it was roughly $15,000 to hedge 5,000 oz. I'm a speculator, I want to buy gold contract or silver contract, that's 5,000 oz, 5 1,000-oz bars. $15,000 approximately in your margin account, collateral, just sitting there. Through a series of incremental increases,
>> When several market mechanics collide at once, price often reflects structure rather than true supply and demand. Andy Schectman's argument suggests a combination of ETF rebalancing and sharply higher COMEX margin requirements created forced selling unrelated to underlying fundamentals. That distinction matters because temporary liquidity events can disguise persistent physical demand beneath the surface. Investors who mistake structural volatility for deteriorating fundamentals may reach the wrong conclusion. Next, Andy Schectman reveals why forced liquidation can create the biggest disconnect between price and reality.
>> By first week in January, that was 54,000. If you didn't post that money every time they raised margins, they would liquidate you within 24 hours. And the cost if you had a 100,000 110,000 in your margin account in December, that would allow you to buy seven contracts. By 5 weeks later, those seven contracts cost you 300% more. And if you don't have that money in your account, you know, you're talking what? 350 plus thousand dollars, you're liquidated, which selling begets selling begets selling begets selling. At the same time, the ETFs are rebalancing. Silver gone straight up. Selling begat selling begat selling begat selling in the margin increases selling selling selling. And as they sell, all of the stops along the way are triggered. Begets more begets more. Okay, so one would think that the price was collapsing. That means demand was collapsing. As that happened, as an example, um China bought more silver in the first quarter of the year than at any time in the history of the country. In February, that's as the price got destroyed, they bought 54 billion dollars worth of gold the first quarter. As the price got destroyed, in February in the United States, 4.1 million ounces of gold delivered as the price got destroyed. That's 20 billion dollars worth of gold. Someone stood for delivery, 5,000 an ounce or pretty damn close to it. Even 4,500. Call it 18 19 billion delivered as the price got knee-capped. Same month, which was a non-delivery month for silver, primary delivery month for gold, about 26 million ounces of silver were delivered. That's still very significant.
>> Price collapses can hide aggressive buying when forced sellers and strategic buyers meet at the same moment. This is where Andy Schectman's thesis shifts from watching charts to studying who quietly accumulates during periods of heavy liquidation. That difference separates institutional positioning from emotional retail reactions. Wealth preservation often depends on recognizing when falling prices reflect market mechanics rather than weakening conviction. Next, Andy Schectman exposes why some of the largest buyers stepped in precisely as prices were falling.
>> But, 39 [snorts] million oz got on trucks and left COMEX that month. That's 160% of what deliveries alone could explain in the month of February. That's 2.9 million pounds of silver worth almost 3/4 billion dollars that got on trucks and said bye. Now, who who did that? Who loaded the trucks? Who ran logistics? Who put insurance on all this and where did it go? Who stood for delivery for nearly 20 billion worth of gold? Who did it this month for 14 billion worth of gold? And and a lot is leaving, a lot is staying. When it stays, it moves from registered, which is the category that the bars are backed off of. In other words, contracts say if you want to stand for delivery, that's registered. Eligible is an account whereby they could move to registered, they're eligible to be registered, but they're not for sale. We have nine Brinks locations throughout North America that we have a storage program and one is in New York. It's the only one that is a Brinks oh is a um a COMEX location. The rest of the Brinks vaults are not COMEX. This one happens to be. I have one client in particular that has 2 million oz in 1,000-oz bars at that location. It's ineligible. It's not registered. If she wanted to move them to registered, she could, but she has no intention of offering these to COMEX. So, my point is when the metal gets delivered, just because it's in eligible in the eligible category and not getting on trucks and driving away like a lot of it has, doesn't matter.
>> If billions of dollars in metal require trucks, insurance, and vault logistics, someone is making decisions far beyond ordinary speculation. Andy Schectman notes that massive physical movements deserve far more scrutiny than daily price fluctuations dominating financial headlines. The unanswered question is who keeps demanding ownership instead of paper exposure despite widespread complacency. Investors should pay closer attention to physical flows than market commentary. Next, Andy Schectman reveals why ownership matters more than where the metal is officially stored.
>> It's still being physically delivered where, you know, like I said, the assumption forever was that no one would stand for delivery, that they would roll, they would settle, they would exit. Now they're saying, "Nah, I want the real bars. I want them in my the numbered bars, and I would like them in my possession. Thank you." And if and when they leave, it wouldn't surprise me, but um I don't I I It's just one of these deals where um I think you're you're beginning to see that delivery is being prioritized over paper promises. That's a big deal because it's never happened before. It's a very big deal because ask yourself for 18, 19 straight months, who the hell's got this kind of money? Who the hell's got $14 billion in June as the price is doing nothing but disappointing? But every all of these massive accumulations, whether it be central banks around the world, Poland who's bought more gold than anyone in the world with the only one who's even been close to them is Tether for the last 2 years, believe it or not. But all of these, you know, Poland or or China or India or any of these countries. How about France repatriating all their gold from the from the New York Fed or India repatriating all their gold from the Bank of England? They would do that because Bank of England is attached to to the LBMA, New York Fed is attached to COMEX. But this follows the Dutch National Bank, the the Bundesbank of Germany, the Bank of Austria, Hungary, Turkey, the Polish National Bank.
>> The biggest shift isn't the gold price. It's who no longer trusts paper claims alone. According to Andy Schectman, 18 months of persistent physical deliveries and growing repatriation efforts suggest institutions increasingly value direct ownership over counterparty exposure. That doesn't automatically predict future prices, but it does reveal changing priorities among major holders. Investors should pay attention when sovereign behavior diverges from conventional market assumptions. Next, Andy Schectman exposes why nations are quietly bringing their bullion home despite public confidence in the existing system.
>> The uh the Czech National Bank. All of these banks said to the West, we'd like our metal back. We'll forego the convenience of the um COMEX or the LBMA. We want it back, but that goes on top of 3 years in a row of 1,000 metric tons or more being purchased by the central banks, and they're a bunch of liars because they told us first quarter of this year, which by by the way was the largest first quarter ever in history of central bank purchases, that they only purchased 16 tons. The um the uh World Gold Council says no, it's 15 times that much. What are you talking about? 15 times that much. So, there's They're like it's 160 tons or whatever the number was. Whatever 16 times 150 times 15, that was the number they came and said, "You've underreported by 15 times, 200 whatever." The point of it is is that the central banks have been buying in what is a inelastic manner. They don't care what the CPI is, they don't care what the employment numbers are, they don't care what anything is. Every single month they've been buying, and they're using the price to misdirect. And the fact that no one has the integrity in the mainstream to say, "Who the hell has stood for delivery?" Again, every month, Charlotte, for 18 or 19 since Trump won the election last November. Every single month there's been between nine and 10 figures of gold and silver delivered. Who's doing it? Why does no one ask? And it is so far outside of what is normal in the 35 years I've done this, less than 1% of any of these contracts stood for delivery. But that narrative is being rewritten in a very, very, very big way, and it's being done so very quietly, and no one's talking about it in the mainstream, and that's why the public just doesn't get it.
>> Official statistics lose credibility when independent organizations report dramatically different accumulation figures. What Andy Schectman is highlighting is the widening gap between reported central bank purchases and estimates suggesting substantially stronger demand. Whether every estimate proves accurate or not, institutional buying has remained historically elevated for years. Investors should focus on sustained actions rather than carefully managed public messaging. Next, Andy Schectman unravels why reported demand may tell only part of the story behind the global bullion market.
>> July 4th was a bummer, and look, you know, when you when you take all of the things around us, you got Scaramucci earlier saying I'm going to remonetize the balance sheet of the United States, you got Trump saying it's the golden era, you know, you got Judy Shelton saying his his advisor his her his her nom his nominee to run the Fed saying at July 4th, we've talked about it all the time. When you see all the gold being delivered on COMEX, when you see all the gold that is being accumulated by the global south, it just made sense. And I will tell you I think it was the best idea I've heard ever. To date, I would say to date it is the best idea I've heard, and I think it should happen, and I think it might happen. Should it have happened July 4th? Well, that's what we all wanted, and that's what Judy thought it would. That doesn't mean it's going to happen. I don't think a gold revaluation is something that we should all count on. Maybe they market to market, as they should. They should at least market to market on their balance sheet, which would give the Treasury General Account 1 trillion free and clear. That's the accounting. But you know, the fact that it didn't happen July 4th was a bummer to the industry, but um again, I don't think it's the end of the story. It's just another series of slight uh disappointments for people in this industry. But you know, through it all, gold and silver seem to have found a way to outperform almost everything since I've known you. And uh there's been bumps in the road and volatility and white-knuckling and and and nauseated counterintuitive price action for a long time. But in the end, it's like the tortoise finds a way to get to the finish line before the hare. I'm not saying that happens all the time. And I And I want to make it clear, you own gold and silver not to become wealthy, but but it is wealth that has outlasted two world wars and German hyperinflation and the Great Depression and every pandemic and every everything. And here we are, 6,000 years after it was named 700 times or they, gold and silver, cumulatively were named 700 times plus in the Bible. And the most well-informed well-informed and well-funded traders on the globe, whether it be the central banks who have bought for really 9 years in a row, but are escalating those numbers and not being forthright about it, called out by the World Gold Council, um or whoever's standing for delivery in billion, billion, billions every month, gold and silver, these people seem to know where the puck is going. And um and I I think that's what they're doing. They're skating to where the puck is going, not where everyone sees it right now.
>> Well, I think that's a great place for us to wrap up unless you had any final brief thoughts to leave with the investors.
>> Markets often disappoint investors who anchor their expectations to specific dates instead of long-term trends. Andy Schectman's argument suggests that regardless of whether policy changes arrive on schedule, institutional accumulation continues while public attention stays focused on short-term headlines. That difference encourages patience over prediction when evaluating precious metals as strategic assets. Wealth preservation is usually measured across cycles, not news events. Next, Andy Schectman reveals why long-term institutional positioning may matter far more than any single policy announcement.
>> Yeah. That's That's That's good. I I I think the most important thing is that for people look at this as wealth and stop looking at the price. It is the greatest tool of misdirection. Look at what the biggest, most well-funded, and well-informed traders in the globe are doing. Central banks, the commercial banks, and whoever is standing for delivery here. The delivery betrays the price. The delivery betrays everything cuz if it was just about price, then the central banks are no dummies. They wouldn't be buying it. The Chinese are not dummies. They wouldn't be buying it. And you think as the price is getting knee-capped for the first quarter that whoever stood for delivery for for almost 20 billion in gold in February, uh who who took 39 million oz out of the COMEX in silver in February or the first quarter in in China most silver ever accumulated or 54 billion in gold. These people know where what what's happening and they're using price at to run cover for it. And And either you see that um logically and and and look at the facts behind it or or dismiss it. That's That's the tough part. Then it's never easy, but I think these people make it easier by their actions because they have the information. Certainly when you're spending nine and 10 figures a month, you would think you have that info.
>> The biggest investing mistake may be treating gold like a trade instead of treating it like financial insurance. This is where Andy Schectman's thesis shifts from predicting prices to examining what large institutions consistently choose to own despite market volatility. Actions by central banks and major buyers deserve careful observation because capital often moves before narratives change. Long-term wealth preservation starts with following incentives, not headlines.