by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 4, 2026 | Banks, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Gold, Historical, Markets, Monetary System, Trade, Trump Administration, USA, Venezuela
Investors have been rightly impressed by gold’s remarkable run, which in dollar terms has doubled in price over the past year. This performance vastly outpaces the stock markets (which are also sitting at all-time highs) and Bitcoin (trading sideways for months), the...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 7, 2026 | Artificial Intelligence, Banks, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, China, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Gold, Inflation, Iran, Markets, Russia, Tariffs, Technology, Trade, Ukraine, USA, Venezuela
Let me get to the punchline of my view on the financial markets for 2026. The remarkable equity bull run of the past couple of years is unlikely to stall, at least not in the first half of 2026. Corrections are inevitable, and we are indeed likely in an asset bubble....
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 8, 2025 | Artificial Intelligence, Blog Articles, China, Crypto, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Russia, Technology, Trump Administration, USA, War
It is difficult to overstate the sea change that the world is facing as a result of the rapid acceleration of advanced computing technologies and their applications—especially in AI, robotics, quantum computing, and micro-nuclear power. Thanks to a generation of human...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 13, 2025 | Artificial Intelligence, Biden Administration, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, China, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Russia, Technology, USA
The United States government, unable to reach agreement on a budget for the new fiscal year, has been officially shuttered for well over a week. Since budgetary rows and the threat of government closure have become a more regular occurrence in recent years, we no...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 29, 2025 | Africa, Banks, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Sanctions, Technology
It used to be that if you lived in a remote village in Africa, or for that matter, Southeast Asia, Latin America, or even behind the Berlin Wall in Eastern Europe, you had desire and need for U.S. dollars, but no easy way to access them. You couldn’t readily exchange...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 5, 2025 | Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Policy, Politics, Tariffs, Trade, Trump Administration, Ukraine, USA
Austerity has a price … worth paying The Trump administration came into office with an ambitious set of promises in tow. During his campaign, and among other things, President Trump committed to end the immigration crisis at the U.S. southern border, stop the war in...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 22, 2025 | Banks, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, BRICS, CBDCs, China, Crypto, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Tariffs, Trump Administration
Precious metals prices are on the move 2025 has started off with a golden hue. Gold and silver have been among the best performing asset classes in 2025, up 12% and 14%, respectively, year-to-date. Over the past two months, these precious metals have outperformed...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 29, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, China, Crypto, Economy, Elections, Finance, Geopolitics, Iran, Monetary System, Russia, Sanctions, Technology, Trump Administration, USA
When then Presidential Candidate Donald J. Trump pivoted in 2024 from crypto-skeptic to arch crypto-advocate, he successfully won over an industry of potential voters that, for the most part, hadn’t previously been active in politics or, in many cases, even voted at...
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 24, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Elections, Monetary System, Policy, Politics, Technology, USA
Last spring, I publicly predicted that the price of Bitcoin would hit $100,000 by the end of 2024. This was quite a statement given BTC prices were then trading in a range of $40,000 to $50,000. While the path would be volatile, I predicted that “the long-term...
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 14, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Crypto, Disinformation, Economy, Elections, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Iran, Israel, Monetary System, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, Tariffs, Technology, Ukraine, USA, War
image credit: Getty Images Following Donald J. Trump’s election victory last week, the President-elect and his transition team have announced multiple cabinet-level and other appointments, outline both domestic and foreign policies, and set the stage for a return to...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jul 29, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Finance, Monetary System, Policy, Politics, USA
Image credit: The Washington Post | The Washington Post | Getty Images How the world turns. It was just over three years ago that former U.S. President Donald J. Trump called Bitcoin a scam and a threat to the U.S. dollar’s position as the world reserve currency. As...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jun 4, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Elections, Finance, Politics, Technology, USA
Even if you care nothing about crypto, it is important to recognize that crypto voters have now mobilized into a powerful and increasingly unified political force that is likely to significantly influence, if not outright shape, the outcome of 2024’s presidential and...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jun 2, 2024 | Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Elections, Finance, Monetary System, Policy, Politics, Technology, USA
I had opportunity to participate last week in a private round table at Consensus 2024, the digital assets and blockchain technology conference, on the tension between CBDCs (central bank-issued digital currencies) and privacy. Under the U.S. Constitution, Americans...
by Michael Wilkerson | Apr 28, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
Various U.S. government agencies announced some surprisingly disappointing economic indicators and other news this week. The data revealed that the U.S. economy is not doing nearly as well as expected. First quarter 2024 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth came in at...
by Michael Wilkerson | Apr 17, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Hamas, Inflation, Iran, Israel, Monetary System, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, Ukraine, USA, War
On Friday (April 12), intraday prices for gold hit an all-time high of $2,445 per ounce before closing the day at $2,360. For a normally sleepy asset, gold’s ten percent rise in three weeks is remarkable. Gold is up 14 percent year-to-date, but most of the price...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 25, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, Monetary System, Politics, Sanctions, USA
When a powerful interest holds a profitably monopoly, it will fight tooth and nail to defend it. So, it is no surprise that the Biden administration and its allies have gone on the offense against the nascent cryptocurrency industry though a coordinated effort of...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 12, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Monetary System, Politics, USA
There have been many legitimate concerns raised about the potential tyranny and abuses that would result from the U.S. government’s issuance of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). CBDCs have been rightly criticized as providing governments with a nearly perfect...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 8, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Covid-19, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Monetary System, Politics, USA
In the ancient Roman calendar, the Ides fell around the middle of the month, specifically the 15th of each March. Made famous by Shakespeare’s dramatic reenactment, the prophetic warning “Beware the Ides of March” speaks of the day in 44 B.C. when the Roman emperor...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 27, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Inflation, USA
It has been nine months since the spectacular and sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. After witnessing three of the four largest bank failures of all time in 2023, the attention of the media and the markets has turned elsewhere. Banking crisis? It is as though it...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 23, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
2023 caught the experts by surprise. Economists and market analysts alike started the year on a pessimistic note, anticipating recession, market declines, and overall weakness in the face of inflation and high interest rates. Yet the much anticipated recession never...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 11, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, Technology, USA
Asking the CEOs of the U.S.’s largest TBTF banks their opinion on crypto was like asking the wolves to vote on whether the fences should be removed from around the sheepfold. The Biden administration continues to work tirelessly to undermine the U.S.’s energy...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 30, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Politics, USA, War
Bitcoin (BTC) hit its all-time high of over $65,000 two years ago in November 2021. Since then, it has been a bloodbath for the entire cryptocurrency market, and Bitcoin has not been spared. Most of the so called “alt-coins” trying to ride the crypto wave led by...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 2, 2023 | Banks, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Finance, Technology
Sam Bankman-Fried, commonly known as SBF, goes on trial later this week for his role as founder and CEO in the collapse of crypto exchange FTX, in what prosecutors allege was a $40 billion fraud. Some sympathetic observers, such as Michael Lewis, the author of The Big...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 8, 2023 | Artificial Intelligence, Blog Articles, Crypto, Politics, Technology, Why America Matters Book
We live in an era in which bots regularly masquerade as humans online. Ours is an age in which identity theft and fraud plague online interactions, and where one’s right to privacy and sanctuary are regularly violated with impunity by both government and corporate...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jul 26, 2023 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Finance, Politics, USA
The war on conservatives and traditional values has expanded to a new and threatening front. Commercial banks, which should be narrowly focused on the business of protecting your money and providing credit, have instead entered the cultural wars. Banks have turned to...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jul 5, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, BRICS, Crypto, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, USA
Bank failures, an AI-led bull market, persistent inflation, Euro area recession, France engulfed in riots, and perhaps the biggest U.S. presidential corruption scandal ever. Looking back on the first half of 2023, it is hard to believe the extraordinary events and...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jun 7, 2023 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Finance, Politics, Technology, USA
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has just filed complaints in Federal court against two of world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, Binance and Coinbase. Binance, the largest exchange globally with several billion dollars of daily transaction volume,...
by Michael Wilkerson | Apr 25, 2023 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, Monetary System, Politics, USA
The Financial Services Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives met earlier this week to conduct an oversight hearing on the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC). While many topics were covered in this marathon session, by far the most important, and the...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 28, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, USA
The banking crisis, which became visible to most Americans only with the sudden and unexpected collapse of Silicon Valley Bank two weeks ago today, has not abated. There are reasons to believe it is going to get worse. So, what should one do to get out of harm’s way?...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 11, 2023 | Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Technology
In one of the most shocking developments to hit the banking sector since the global financial crisis fifteen years ago, Silicon Valley Bank, the country’s sixteenth largest bank with $209 billion in assets, failed on Friday. SVB’s claim to fame was its deep connection...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 19, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Covid-19, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Sanctions, USA
One of the most important disciplines in investing, whether personally or professionally, is to look back on investments made and take stock not just of how they performed, but why. What decision-making or other avoidable errors led to bad outcomes? What lessons can...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 14, 2023 | Armed Forces, Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Covid-19, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
Like many governments around the world, the Biden administration seems determined to limit Americans’ monetary freedom by taxing it away, and by manipulating and controlling how they store and spend their money. Here are a few examples of how this is happening. Let’s...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 14, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, China, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Sanctions, Stormwall Book, USA, Why America Matters Book
We’re at a turning point in history. This could be said of many things, but it is certainly true of the modern monetary system. Like most transitions in life and in history, the monetary system’s transformation is occurring slowly, then suddenly, in that the changes...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 19, 2022 | Banks, Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, New York
After weeks of speculation as to whether former billionaire now hapless adolescent actor Sam Bankman-Fried would be arrested for fraud surrounding FTX, the cryptocurrency exchange he ran into the ground, the mystery is over. The man widely known as SBF surrendered to...
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 18, 2022 | Banks, Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, New York, Technology, USA
When I wrote last week about the collapse of crypto exchange FTX and the fall from grace of its founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (“Falling Meteorite FTX Scorches Crypto Landscape”), it was already apparent that this multi-billion dollar swindle was going to go down...
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 12, 2022 | Banks, Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, USA, Why America Matters Book
Cover art/illustration via Financial Times After several months of calm in the crypto industry, characterized by a role reversal in which equities were highly volatile and cryptocurrencies flat and boring, a familiar if tragic drama reminiscent of Icarus is now...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 28, 2022 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Stormwall Book, USA, Why America Matters Book
Following the drubbing of the crypto markets in June 2022, with Bitcoin and Ethereum prices down nearly 75 percent and 82 percent, respectively, from their all-time highs, many market observers predicted the early death of the crypto industry. Crypto detractors,...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jul 11, 2022 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Stormwall Book, USA
If we want to solve America’s current economic crisis, at least three things are necessary. These initiatives may only be possible after mid-terms and a new Congress, but it’s not too early to start thinking about solutions. First and foremost, we must unshackle...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 22, 2022 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Finance, Inflation, Stormwall Book
Image credit: Getty Images I spent last week at Permissionless, a multi-day event touted as the “world’s largest DeFi conference” (DeFi = decentralized finance). With over 7,000 attendees, the conference focused on crypto-related topics like the metaverse, Web 3.0,...