New Era for Gold and Silver: Experts See "Sea Change" in Investment

Kyle Horn, whose journey into the industry began 15 years ago, and Charlie Horn, an experienced entrepreneur with a background in real estate, shared their unique perspective as bullion dealers and lifelong precious metals enthusiasts. They highlighted the historical context of the post-1971 monetary landscape and current market dynamics to suggest that a massive shift in capital allocation is already underway.

Discussing a recent correction in the gold price, which came after an impressive run, Kyle Horn immediately reframed the event. He dismissed the idea that the metal had simply gone up "too fast," instead stating:

"I like to say that we are living through one of the greatest experiments in recorded human history... what I've observed this year in 2025 is nowhere near close to even what was happening back [in 2011]."

He described the current activity as a "sea paradigm shift" in gold ownership and its role as a monetary metal, noting that dips have been "very shallow" and "aggressively bought." This conviction is rooted in historical data on precious metals allocation. Horn cited an estimate suggesting that metals and related securities currently comprise only around 1% to 2% of total US savings and investment assets. He drew a stark comparison to the 1980 peak, when that figure was believed to be between 6% and 8%.

Charlie Horn reinforced this sentiment by examining the macro picture through the lens of human behavior and generational cycles, mentioning the "Fourth Turning" framework. He pointed out that the last such crisis period, which coincided with World War II, saw gold substantially outperform the S&P 500.

The Horns linked their bullish outlook to the broader trend of investors re-evaluating traditional portfolio construction. They specifically referenced a September call by Morgan Stanley's CIO, Mike Wilson, suggesting a shift away from the classic 60/40 portfolio (60% equity, 40% debt) toward including alternative assets.

"If we're somewhere between one and 2% allocation relative to the broader market right now... and people were to allocate in the way in which Mike Wilson talks about, I'll leave your imagination open and let it run wild with what could happen to the price of precious metals, namely gold and silver."

They also explored the impact of Fed rate cuts and the Treasury market's seemingly contradictory signals. Kyle Horn believes the Fed is "trapped" between the threat of inflation and deflation, concluding: "I think they're going to choose death by inflation, i.e., we debase all of our obligations." This scenario further strengthens the case for owning gold and silver, which stand outside the system as a "real form of money" with no counterparty risk.

The interview also highlighted the company's efforts to disrupt the traditionally opaque bullion industry by offering a unique platform. They aim to democratize access to wholesale pricing by aggregating live product pricing from market makers, not spot pricing or inflated retail markups.

"Bullion Standard Pro gives anybody and everybody the ability to buy or sell $100 worth of precious metals for as close to $100 as the market dictates."

They revealed ambitious plans to develop what they called the "Bloomberg terminal for bullion," a sophisticated platform offering live portfolio tracking, historic premium data, and even a direct data connection to the wholesale market to see live trade flows. This push for transparency is driven by the belief that the market is "serially underserved."

On the topic of market signals, Kyle Horn shared a rarely discussed indicator of an imminent physical silver shortage, a "true physical squeeze", which is distinct from the price action in retail products.

"The surefire sign that there is a true physical squeeze going on is when you start seeing thousand-ounce silver bar premiums start to have a premium because this is something that would typically be available at spot price."

He explained that while smaller retail products like Silver Eagles often see massive premium spikes during fear-based buying events (like in March 2020), a true systemic squeeze would be signaled by the premiums on the massive, wholesale-only 1,000-ounce bars moving above spot price. This is due to the trillion-dollar size of that market compared to the mere billion-dollar size of the finished retail product market.

The experts concluded by emphasizing the importance of personal conviction over blindly following advice.

"Nobody can tell you what to do. Nobody can tell you what metal to buy, what stock to buy. This is something that you have to develop conviction for yourself. Develop a thesis, understand, and know why you would buy something."

Their overarching message is that 2025 is shaping up to be a "sea change year" where precious metals regain favor, suggesting a prolonged and potentially explosive bull market ahead for educated, convicted investors.