Eric Sepanek
SBC Founder
Eric Sepanek is the founder of Scottsdale Bullion & Coin, established in 2011. With extensive experience in the precious metals industry, he is dedicated to educating Americans on the wealth preservation power of gold and silver.
John Karow
Precious Metals Advisor
John Karow is an experienced lawyer and Precious Metals Advisor at Scottsdale Bullion & Coin. He holds degrees from Lehigh University, the University of Missouri, Cornell University, and St. John’s University School of Law. John is a knowledgeable authority in precious metals, dedicated to helping clients navigate economic cycles and gold and silver investments.
Following gold’s crossing of the long-held $3,500/oz ceiling, futures and spot prices have continued rising to new highs. Although many investors are hyper-focused on where the top of the rally might be, official players are focused on gold’s role in the emerging economic system.
In this week’s The Gold Spot, Scottsdale Bullion & Coin Founder Eric Sepanek and Precious Metals Advisor John Karow discuss the significance of the recent meeting between Chinese, Russian, and Indian leaders, what it means for the waning US-led global order, and how gold is implicated.
Where is Gold’s Momentum Headed
Since first reaching $3,500/oz in April, gold spot prices revisited this mark following months of sideways trading. Instead of hanging around, the yellow metal experienced an immediate jolt upwards, reaching a all-time high of $3,673.95 per ounce on Tuesday, September 9th, 2025.
Naturally, the gold market is excitable as investors wonder about the next moves. With 2025 gold price predictions remaining elevated, along with many experts saying $4,000/oz, and even $5,000/oz, is on the table, the outlook certainly looks bright.
However, this myopic focus on price action risks overlooking the true value of gold as the foundational bedrock of a burgeoning global order.
“The price of gold is reflecting what the free market says is going on.”
John Karow
Precious Metals Advisor
Perhaps no countries understand or demonstrate that reality more than the BRICS nations, three of which held one of the most consequential meetings to date.
China, Russia, & India Grow Closer
Recently, President Xi of China hosted a summit with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Following an elaborate military parade, a characteristic show of force, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) acted as a show of force for the emerging nations’ plan to move away from a US-dominated global order and establish their sphere of influence economically, technologically, and militarily.
Seong-Hyon Lee, who serves as a senior fellow at the George H. W. Bush Foundation for US–China Relations, described the meeting as a “public manifestation of a profound shift in China’s strategic posture: a deep ‘psychological decoupling’ from the West.”
The Munich Security Conference Foundation Council’s president, Wolfgang Ischinger, echoed these sentiment, saying the “anti-Western alliance” between the countries was “worrisome.”
The big population economies of the world are starting to find ways to trade with each other without the dollar. And that is one of the indications of why countries like China have been buying so much gold.–
The Architecture of a Post-Dollar World
While the optics of exaggerated military parades and closed-door meetings lead some to brush off this rising axis as chest-beating, there’s undeniable momentum behind these de-dollarization efforts. The BRICS nations, led by China, have already made concrete moves to gain independence from the Western-led banking system, and many other pieces are in the works.
Bilateral Trade in Local Currencies
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the US led the West in sanctioning the Kremlin to curb the war effort. Instead, the financial isolation only increased bilateral trade relations between Russia and China, of which 90% is done without the dollar.
Digital Currencies
The emerging economic powerhouse between China, Russia, India, and even North Korea is heavily involved with digital currencies, including Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and cryptocurrency.
The non-democratic nations have fewer guardrails when it comes to digital currency exploration and implementation, resulting in quicker innovation. Furthermore, the digital yuan is a pioneer in cross-border trade between Putin and Xi.
International Banking
China launched CIPS to bypass the Western-led SWIFT system. The Eastern-focused system supports trade in yuan denominations, rather than the global USD standard. At the SCO summit, these countries discussed strengthening the backbone of a shared international banking system. Russia even mentioned the launch of SCO-issued Treasuries and a regional development bank.
Rewriting Commodity Markets
SCO members are also seeking to upend the Western-led system of commodity pricing. Russia and China, in particular, are pushing to settle oil, gas, and other resource trades in yuan, rubles, or even digital currencies, directly challenging the decades-old petrodollar system. The ultimate goal is to shift global pricing benchmarks for energy and metals toward Asian-led centers, cementing a financial order less dependent on the US dollar.
“This is an evolutionary trend. That's not going to slow down, not going to go away. It means prices of gold and silver are going to continue to rise.”
John Karow
Precious Metals Advisor
Why This Matters to US Investors
The economic machinations of foreign governments halfway across the world may seem unimportant to the daily investment decisions of Americans. Yet, the US’s economic foundation rests on the dollar’s status as the world reserve currency, a position that’s directly under threat.
The rise of a rival global system could topple the dollar’s safe-haven status and open the door for a multi-polar economic order. With most Americans’ investments tied up in USD-backed assets, such as stocks and bonds, the average net worth of the entire country could suffer a significant blow.
Gold is the New Foundation
Source: Crescat Capital LLC via Investing.com
The BRICS shift from the US dollar as the cornerstone of the global economy is only half the story. The other is being measured in tonnage of physical gold as countries stock up their bullion reserves at record rates. This long-term strategy of accumulating gold to hedge against the unavoidable volatility of a shifting economic order doesn’t have to be relegated to the national level.
“It’s not what the gold price is today. It's what it's going to be in 5 to 10 years. That's what people need to keep their minds set on right now: Not what your profit margin is today, but where is the preservation of your wealth going tomorrow?”
Eric Sepanek
SBC Founder
Many investors are adding to their portfolios, not just in response to today’s bullish price action, but for the long-term security and peace of mind it provides.
If you’d like to learn more about how these ongoing developments could impact your financial future, check out our Beijing Convergence Report, just released last Friday. It’s a great resource to help shape your plan for the future.
SUGGESTED READING
Question or Comments?
If you have any questions about today’s topics or want to see us discuss something specific in a future The Gold Spot episode, please add them here.
Comment
Questions or Comments?
"*" indicates required fields