Alasdair Macleod: The threat to commodity derivatives
Submitted by admin on Thu, 2026-02-19 11:00 Section: Daily DispatchesThe plan was to kill off gold as money
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By Alasdair Macleod
Von Greyerz / Gold Switzerland, Zurich
Tuesday, February 17, 2026
For years bulls of gold and silver have complained about how derivatives have been used to suppress their prices. Their dreams of the practice ending could be coming true.
Vietnam tackles gold fever with black market crackdown
Submitted by admin on Wed, 2026-02-18 15:59 Section: Daily DispatchesBy Lien Hoang
Nikkei, Tokyo
Wednesday, February 18, 2026
HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam -- Vietnam has introduced fines to clamp down on illicit gold in a country where the metal is so popular that locals have quoted the prices of motorbikes and homes in gold instead of dong.
People can be penalized up to 300 million dong ($11,550) for producing gold illegally under the new Decree 340, effective Feb. 9. Vietnam, the top gold market in Southeast Asia, unveiled the rules months after the communist state surrendered its monopoly on trade and production in December.
Mali and Barrick reset ties over $900 million gold asset with 10-year deal
Submitted by admin on Mon, 2026-02-16 19:39 Section: Daily DispatchesBy Segun Adeyemi
Business Insider Africa, New York
Monday, February 16, 2026
Mali's military-led government has approved a draft decree extending the operating permit for Barrick Mining's Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex by a further 10 years, marking a decisive end to a prolonged dispute that unsettled one of Africa's most important gold assets.
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GATA would have been grateful for this guy's support, or Ray Dalio's, or Stanley Druckenmiller's
Submitted by admin on Mon, 2026-02-16 19:27 Section: Daily DispatchesInvesting Legend David Einhorn Says Gold Is Replacing U.S. Treasurys as a Global Reserve Asset
By Jennifer Sor
Business Insider, New York
Thursday, February 12, 2026
Billionaire David Einhorn thinks gold is well on its way to becoming the world's ultimate reserve asset.
Man in Italy accidentally trashes 20 gold bars worth $140,000
Submitted by admin on Mon, 2026-02-16 14:18 Section: Daily DispatchesThanks to heroic police and sanitation workers, he got them back. But now everybody knows where they are.
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By Gabrielle Rockson
People Magazine, New York
Monday, February 16, 2026
A man in Italy accidentally threw 20 bars of gold into the garbage.
On Thursday, Feb, 12, the police revealed that a 57-year-old man in southern Italy took out his trash without realizing that his gold, worth around 120,000 euros ($142,000), was inside, according to Corriere della Sera, Reuters, and Italien News.
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Soaring gold price forces vaults to reduce insurance cover
Submitted by admin on Mon, 2026-02-16 11:04 Section: Daily DispatchesBy Lee Harris
Financial Times, London
Monday, February 16, 2026
Soaring gold prices are prompting some vault operators to leave larger values of bullion uninsured, as their holdings approach the limits of available cover, insurance brokers have told the Financial Times.
Barry Vickery from broker Howden said that although cover for a single storage location had risen from an average $3 billion maximum a few years ago to as much as $5 billion, the historic gold rally was changing industry behaviour.
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