『Gold Bar in the garden』
image extraction: Firefly
According to swissinfo.ch, it’s estimated that about 10 tons of gold are buried in gardens across Switzerland.
Switzerland is a well-known high-income country and a global hub for gold trading.
The fact that Swiss francs are bought during times of crisis indicates that it’s undoubtedly one of the world’s most trusted countries in finance.
About 5% of gold buyers in this country bury physical gold in their home gardens as a form of insurance, partly due to diminishing trust in banks.
The page also introduced a ranking of preferred investment forms in Switzerland:
1. Real estate investment
2. Savings
3. Precious metals in general
4. Gold
5. Investment trusts
6. Stock investments
7. Private pension/life insurance
8. Cryptocurrency
9. Ultra-short term/regular investments
10. Government bonds
Considering that savings would be the overwhelming first choice in Japan, the difference in national characteristics is clear. According to Claude.ai, in Japan:
1. Savings
2. Life insurance
3. Government bonds
While real estate investment has some popularity in Japan, it’s not common due to large capital requirements. Stock investments have likely become more widespread recently due to the NISA system. Either way, it’s certain that gold investment isn’t popular enough in Japan to rank fourth.
One important point to note about these rankings is that while savings rank high in both countries, its implications are completely different in Switzerland versus Japan.
From an investment perspective, accumulating Japanese yen versus Swiss francs has many significant differences.
Gold Investment Recommended in the Global Economy
Personally, I only hold some gold futures. For commodities, I also hold small positions in silver, palladium, and platinum (as noted on https://inv.jp/en/stocks/s005/ since November 2023).
While palladium seems slightly behind, other metals are steadily increasing in value. Gold, in particular, continues to break historical highs with unabated momentum.
The fundamental reasons often cited include unstable global conditions, uncertainty about the U.S., and worldwide inflation. When it’s difficult to find safe countries or products for defensive investment, turning to gold seems like a natural choice.
The True Meaning of Burying Gold in Gardens
Buying physical gold and burying it in gardens seems to go beyond concerns about the global economy’s future – it appears to be preparation for even more extreme scenarios, which is somewhat frightening.
While the article attributes this to eroding trust in banks, which is certainly a factor and “something banks should consider as a loss of authority,” I felt immediately upon seeing the article that this was preparation for worst-case scenarios where even banks cease to function.
This doesn’t seem unrelated to the fact that one party in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war possesses nuclear weapons.
Personally, I think it might be worth gradually starting to prepare for the absolute worst-case scenario, similar to burying gold in gardens. While I haven’t thought of a good analogy for methods similar to burying gold in gardens, it would likely involve relatively simple and primitive approaches.
And if truly preparing for the absolute worst case, the focus should be on gold, not cash, wine, luxury watches, or paintings.
