Page 18 - Bullion World Volume 4 Issue 1 January 2024

Bullion World | Volume 4 | Issue 1 | January 2024

Gold Resurgence: Central Banks,

Market Turmoil, and the Unfolding

Financial Paradigm

Mr Willem Middelkoop,
Member OMFIF Advisory Board
Founder of Dutch-based Commodity Discovery Fund.

Commodity Discovery Fund
with its own researchers in Hong
Kong and the US, the fund analyzed
significant drilling programs
worldwide to invest in the most
successful exploration companies.
Soon after its inception, the
Lehman crash occurred. During
the recovery, the fund rose by over
300% within three years. The fund
subsequently grew rapidly and
reached assets under management
(AUM) of 160 million euros. Since its
launch in 2008, the fund achieved
a (gross) annual return of over 70%
four times. More than 75 small
successful exploration companies
in which the fund invested
were acquired by larger mining
companies seeking reserves.

Mr Willem Middelkoop

In the evolving landscape of global finance, an The recent spike in interest rates has led to substantial
unobtrusive yet profound shift is occurring: the losses for bondholders worldwide, spanning commercial
resurgence of gold in the world's monetary framework. banks, asset managers, and international central banks.
This resurgence, though unannounced, has stemmed This erosion of value in government bonds, typically
from a nexus of factors. Chief among these is the a cornerstone of central bank reserves, has forced
diminishing trust in the US dollar following the freezing of European gold-holding central banks to consider utilizing
Russian foreign exchange reserves post the Ukrainian their gold revaluation accounts to offset balance sheet
invasion, compelling central banks to increase their gold losses, avoiding the need for government bailouts that
reserves.

18