Claudio Grass

"I don’t see bitcoin as an alternative to gold, but as another way for the ordinary citizen to protect him or herself from monetary inflation of fiat currencies."Alasdair MacleodClaudio Grass (CG): After the massive crypto- and blockchain- related advances of 2016-2017 that shone a spotlight on the idea of alternative or private money, what do you think the potential of such concepts is in the ...

“The Eurozone faces the worst combination of economic and systemic risk”The past few months have been an exciting time for gold investors, as the precious metal has seen a spike in demand after serious economic concerns and geopolitical tensions unsettled the markets. Many mainstream analysts have pointed to a number of recent events, from the US-China trade war escalations to the inverted yiel...

After the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy U-turn earlier this year and the central bank’s decision to cut interest rates for the first time in a decade, mainstream investors and analysts believe that holding rates lower and for longer will help keep stock markets afloat and the economic expansion alive. However, given the actual state of the economy, the fundamentals of most leading US compan...

“The intellectual leaders of the peoples have produced and propagated the fallacies which are on the point of destroying liberty and Western civilization.”Ludwig von Mises, Planned ChaosIt took multiple meetings and over 50 hours of official negotiations for EU leaders to reach an agreement on the appointments for the top jobs of the EU and the ECB, but in mid-July the results finally came in. ...

“Like medieval alchemy that failed to turn lead into gold, today's easy-money folly of central banks and governments will lead to crisis, not economic growth and prosperity.” – H.S.H. Prince Michael of Liechtenstein Claudio Grass (CG): Despite its formidable tradition and the “Old-World” heritage that Liechtenstein was founded upon, the tiny principality has been incredibly agile and effic...

“In fact, it is easier for governments to control the spending of people in debt than those with savings. A person with financial resources is free, while debtors are hostage to their creditors.”H.S.H. Prince Michael of LiechtensteinThe rare resilience and the economic and strategic prowess of the Principality of Liechtenstein have elevated the small alpine nation to a bright example internatio...

“Inflationism, however, is not an isolated phenomenon. It is only one piece in the total framework of politico-economic and socio-philosophical ideas of our time.Just as the sound money policy of gold standard advocates went hand in hand with liberalism, free trade, capitalism and peace, so is inflationism part and parcel of imperialism, militarism, protectionism, statism and socialism.”Ludwig ...

“Venezuela is the current poster child of interventionist failure”When looking at the quality of the media coverage of Venezuela’s crisis and the interpretations of the factors that caused it, the superficiality of most analyses quickly becomes apparent. The explanations offered by many “experts” and commentators largely ignore the country’s history and fail to take into account the pre-existin...

All this borrowing to consume is unsustainable and the bill is overdueJune has been an interesting month for gold, as geopolitical events, market fluctuations and developments on the monetary policy front fueled an exciting ride for the precious metal. As long-term investors with a strict focus on the big picture, short-term moves and speculative angles are largely irrelevant in and of themselv...

Interview with Chris PowellEvery seasoned gold investor and every student of monetary history has likely stumbled upon various theories about institutional manipulation of the gold market. While it is true that rarely is there smoke without fire, it is still important to approach this matter rationally and form opinions based on sound evidence and solid research. This is why I have personally b...