Executive Insights

In my last post, I wrote about prospects for civil war in Ukraine turning into a direct confrontation between Russia and the West, and what that would mean for gold prices. I said that markets had not yet woken up to this reality and when they did, gold prices would rise. Markets are now taking…

What is the connection between the price of gold and civil war in Ukraine? Simple—gold has long been a refuge in times of political turmoil. When investors and savers realize the severity of a threat to their wellbeing, they rush to gold to protect their wealth, driving prices up quickly. In recent weeks, the conflict…

Gold jumped $22 an ounce on news that a Malaysian Airlines flight (MH17) was shot down over eastern Ukraine. Later in the day, all signs were pointing to a missile strike on the aircraft, and persuasive evidence was developing that Russian-backed rebels launching a Russian-built missile were responsible. The world awaited the smoking gun of…

Read Part 1. In my last post, I discussed three myths about gold that Gary Alexander describes in a piece on Seeking Alpha. Understanding these myths is important because they deter many investors from making gold part of their financial portfolios. I’ll address four additional myths here. Myth #4: Gold is primarily a hedge against…

I recently ran across an article entitled “The 12 Biggest Mistakes the Media Make When Covering Gold Markets," by Gary Alexander. It’s a good article for potential gold buyers because it debunks many of the myths that lead investors, and their financial advisors, to exclude gold from their portfolios. For the most part, Alexander’s assessment…

For weeks, I’ve intended to write a post on the current stock market bubble, and now, the New York Times' David Leonhardt has beaten me to it, but I'll make some additional points. Robert Shiller, a Noble prize-winning economist, is among the market analysts and economists whose work I follow and admire. I discovered Shiller several years…

Read Part 1 The Sacagawea Dollar The story of the Sacagawea dollar is relevant, today, not just because it’s an interesting piece of our history, but also because it’s a window into how Washington, D.C. works — and doesn't work. I’ve been around politics and government much of my career, in senior positions in the U.S.…

My recent post on Fort Knox and Coin Week article continue to generate quite a few questions. Here’s one that inspired me to do a little research: Q: Is it true that the gold that was confiscated from American citizens by FDR’s government is stored at Fort Knox? January 30, 1934. President Franklin Roosevelt signs the…

Gold bars purportedly stored in Fort Knox My recent post on Fort Knox and Coin Week article about Fort Knox generated quite a few questions. I'll answer a couple of the most interesting questions here on the blog. Q: Since we are no longer on the gold standard and like you said, Fort Knox houses…

The public image of the United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox, Kentucky, was cemented in the 1964 movie Goldfinger. Fort Knox as depicted in James Bond's GoldfingerPhoto courtesy United Artists The four-story vaults of shining chrome bar-encased gold, suspended staircases and vast interior are now classic Hollywood images of what our imaginations want Fort…

This post begins a series in which I give readers an insider’s view of how Washington, DC, works (and doesn’t work) from my perspective as director of the U.S. Mint. The complete story of how the Sacagawea dollar (aka, the Golden dollar) came to be has never been told, and the accounts that have been…

This is the second in a series of posts making the "Main Street" case for gold. Read Part I I described in my last post how gold’s core value proposition is as wealth insurance. Here I’ll address why understanding gold as wealth insurance, rather than as just another investment vehicle, is crucial to understanding why gold…