Precious metals are the bedrock of the financial world. They have permanent value and are the oldest form of money in the world. If you don’t own physical gold and silver, your investment portfolio lacks a sound foundation. Precious metals are often sought after as a store of permanent value, and as a method of diversifying portfolios.
While cash, bonds, stocks and real estate offer investors financial diversification, precious metals underpin all other assets, particularly during times of economic turbulence and market turmoil.
Imagine an upside-down pyramid containing successive layers of asset classes.
That’s what the late John Exter envisioned when he devised a model ranking assets based on their risk level and financial soundness. The American economist and central banker placed risk-free gold at the apex of the inverted pyramid, below Federal Reserve cash, U.S. treasury bills, notes and bonds, AAA-rated corporate bonds, paper currencies, certificate