Why Gold Holds Intrinsic Value: Paper Currency vs. Precious Metals

There are a lot of factors that go into whether or not an investment is a good one. In times of political and economic uncertainty, gold often holds its intrinsic value better than other investments like paper currency. After all what is really different about a piece of paper with markings for $100 versus one that is marked as $1?

In this blog post, we’re going to take a look at what makes gold such a valuable asset, and why it is often seen as a hedge against economic instability. This of course is in an era where “money printing” often means just digits on a screen and the paper money often doesn’t even exist!

Gold has been used as a form of currency and store of value for centuries. This is why many gold and silver buffs consider these precious metals “true money” because they actually store value. Unlike paper currency, gold is not subject to the whims of central banks or governments. Gold is also scarce – there is only a limited amount of gold in the world, and new gold mining operations are becoming increasingly difficult and expensive to set up. All of these factors contribute to gold’s intrinsic value.

Investing in gold can be a good way to diversify your investment portfolio and protect yourself against inflation or economic instability. Gold is often seen as a safe haven asset, and its value tends to go up when other assets like stocks or bonds are falling in value. If you’re thinking of investing in gold, it’s important to do your research and speak to a financial advisor to get the best advice for your situation. Of course it’s also important to understand the biases of anyone you speak to in this regard – do they stand to lose “AUM” (assets under management) if you were to reallocate some of your portfolio into precious metals?

Portfolio managers are often paid as an annual percentage of their assets under management and the only tools they may have access to allocate funds into gold or silver are ETFs (exchange traded funds) which is essentially a paper representation of the “value” of gold or silver. Taking possession of the gold or silver investment removes the assets from the portfolio manager’s wheelhouse entirely.

Physical Gold Holds Intrinsic Value

Now that we’ve looked at some of the reasons why gold holds intrinsic value, let’s take a look at how gold stacks up against paper currency as an investment.

Paper currency, also known as fiat currency, is legal tender that is issued by a government and not backed by a physical commodity. The value of paper currency is based on faith in the issuing government and the stability of the economy. In recent years, we’ve seen a lot of countries experience currency crises, where the value of the currency plummets due to economic instability. This can lead to inflation, and people’s savings can be wiped out overnight.

Gold, on the other hand, is a physical commodity that has been used as a form of currency for centuries. Gold is scarce and durable, and it doesn’t corrode or tarnish over time. Gold is also easy to store and transport, making it a convenient form of currency. All of these factors contribute to gold’s intrinsic value.

So, which is a better investment – gold or paper currency? That depends on your individual circumstances and goals. If you’re looking for a safe haven asset to protect your wealth from inflation or economic instability, gold may be a good choice. However, if you’re looking for growth potential, paper currency may offer more opportunities. As with any investment, it’s important to do your research and speak to a financial advisor before making any decisions. These legal disclaimers are important because, while we a IIGC research investing in precious metals deeply and have for well over a decade we are not financial managers and are thus especially not your financial manager.

What do you think? Which do you prefer – gold or fiat currency? Are you sick of all the money printing and debasing of the dollar?

If so it may be worth considering rolling over your IRA or 401k into a Gold IRA and our partner here can help you do that. When you follow this link you’ll get access to a free Gold IRA kit where you can learn much more about that process.

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Joshua Parker

Independent precious metals investor since 2006 who has learned through mistakes he hopes to help you avoid. Self employed entrepreneur since birth 😉 Owner of www.HealthHarmonic.com