Ask Mike Anything: Gold, Silver, Fiat Failure, and Why Movement Matters -

Mike Maharrey opened this Midweek Memo with a different format: an unscripted “Ask Mike Anything” episode recorded ahead of travel. Instead of a prepared monologue, he answered listener questions on sound money, precious metals, inflation, AI, Federal Reserve policy, and even his longevity as a 59-year-old hockey goalie.
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<h2>Will We Ever Trade in Gold and Silver Again?</h2>
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Maharrey said a full return to physical gold and silver transactions would likely require a severe breakdown in government or a “Mad Max” scenario. Short of that, he expects monetary change to come through evolution, not a sudden return to coinage.
He argued that all fiat systems eventually fail because governments cannot resist printing money. With U.S. debt approaching nearly $40 trillion, <a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2026/05/12/de-dollarization-has-the-end-of-history-ended-004911">de-dollarization gaining momentum</a>, and countries wary of dollar weaponization after sanctions on Russia, he expects <a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2026/05/14/the-dollar-is-shrinking-and-gold-could-explode-higher-004915">the dollar to lose prominence over time</a>.
Rather than one replacement, Maharrey sees a multipolar monetary world: dollars, euros, yuan, gold, silver, and other currencies competing. He expects gold to play a larger role because central banks are buying it and because, unlike fiat money, gold and silver cannot be printed.
<h2>Oil Prices and Inflation</h2>
A listener asked whether higher oil prices would raise overall consumer inflation. Maharrey stressed that rising prices are not inflation in the historic sense; they are a symptom of monetary inflation, meaning <a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2026/05/10/inflation-is-americans-biggest-financial-worry-and-its-not-even-close-004905">expansion of money and credit</a>.
An oil shock can raise many prices because energy touches nearly everything. But without money-supply expansion, higher gasoline costs force consumers to cut spending elsewhere. Hotel prices, travel costs, or other discretionary goods could fall as households reallocate budgets.
His central point was that only money and credit creation raise the entire price structure like a tide.
<h2>Could Gold Hit $6,000?</h2>
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Maharrey said the claim that gold could hit $6,000 this year is not merely hype. He cited major banks, including Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, Citibank, and Chase, as having issued bullish forecasts in the $5,500 to $6,000 range.
He said war can create short-term safe-haven buying, followed by selling as investors raise cash. But the deeper drivers remain debt, central bank gold buying, overvalued stocks, and monetary instability.
He also remains bullish on silver, noting that the silver market has been in a structural deficit for five straight years. He does not believe January’s highs will necessarily be the peak for gold or silver this year.
<h2>Bullion Versus Collectible Coins</h2>
On numismatic coins, Maharrey was blunt: in a crisis, collectible value may matter far less than metal content. He personally prefers bullion because it carries <a href="https://youtube.com/shorts/KLDwrufSl7U?si=jh1QuijaKtIVhrzA" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lower premiums and less subjective risk</a>.
He warned listeners about bait-and-switch tactics where dealers advertise low-premium bullion, then try to upsell buyers into collectibles. He said Money Metals specialists are not commission-based and do not operate that way.
<h2>Is AI a Bubble?</h2>
Maharrey said yes. AI reminds him of the dot-com era: <a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2026/05/18/gold-demand-in-tech-and-industry-up-modestly-in-q1-004908">transformative technology</a> surrounded by companies with massive valuations and uncertain staying power.
He believes AI will reshape the economy, but many AI-related stocks may not survive. If that bubble bursts, he said, it could drag down the broader stock market, which he already views as significantly overvalued.
<h2>Trading the Gold-Silver Ratio</h2>
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The gold-silver ratio was about 54-to-1 at the time of the episode, meaning it took roughly 54 ounces of silver to buy one ounce of gold. Maharrey said that sits near the modern historical range of 50-to-1 to 60-to-1.
He said trading the ratio can be a legitimate strategy: buy silver when it is undervalued, then swap into gold when silver catches up. But he cautioned that timing markets is difficult and investment decisions depend on personal goals, risk tolerance, and knowledge.
<h2>Silver’s Outperformance and Future Rate Cuts</h2>
Maharrey expects silver to continue benefiting from physical shortages. He noted that gold-silver ratios had been around 80-to-1 or 90-to-1 last year, showing silver had been deeply undervalued before catching up.
He also expects rate cuts eventually, even if inflation rises. In his view, when central bankers must choose between <a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2026/05/18/central-bank-gold-buying-was-up-in-q1-004907">saving the economy and fighting inflation</a>, history shows they choose inflation.
<h2>Making Precious Metals Normal Again</h2>
Maharrey said precious metals payments are already possible if both parties agree. He has personally been paid in gold or silver for services.
But widespread adoption requires motivation. Dollars remain convenient, and most people are not yet ready to change. Hyperinflation, crisis, or fiat breakdown could provide that incentive.
For barter, Maharrey likes <a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/buy/silver/junk-silver">junk silver: pre-1965 U.S. quarters, dimes, and half dollars</a> containing 90% silver. He said a 1964 silver quarter had a melt value of about $15, making it useful for smaller transactions.
<h2>Economic Cause and Effect Takes Time</h2>
Responding to a question about policy lag, Maharrey said economic effects often take longer than people expect. The economy does not move on a 30-second news cycle.
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He used the 2006 subprime warning signs and the 2008 financial crisis as an example. Problems were visible to some, including Ron Paul, long before they became obvious to the mainstream.
<h2>Health Is Wealth</h2>
Maharrey closed with a personal answer about playing hockey goalie at age 59. His secret, he said, is stubbornness: he refuses to quit.
He said movement preserves movement. Stopping is deadly. He stretches daily, goes to the gym, watches his diet, and keeps playing because hockey supports both his physical and mental health.
He cited the common estimate that men lose about 10% of muscle mass per decade after age 40, but argued this is not inevitable. It happens largely because people stop moving.
His final message was simple: <a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/programs/monthly-program">gold and silver help preserve financial wealth</a>, but health is the greater wealth.

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