Daily Gold Market Report

The Digital Iron Curtain
Binance Chief Pleads Guilty To Breaking U.S. Anti-money Laundering Laws

(USAGOLD – 11/22/2023) Gold prices remained flat going in to the Thanksgiving holiday, hovering around $2,000. Gold is trading at $1,999.34, up $1.05. Silver is trading at $23.73, down 2 cents. Binance chief Changpeng Zhao stepped down and pleaded guilty to breaking U.S. anti-money laundering laws as part of a $4.3 billion settlement resolving a years-long probe into the world’s largest crypto exchange, Reuters reports. “Binance made it easy for criminals to move their stolen funds and illicit proceeds on its exchanges,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said on Tuesday. “Binance also did more than just fail to comply with federal law. It pretended to comply.”

In response to today’s DOJ and US Treasury press conference on the Federal charges against Binance, Balaji Srinivasan, famed angel investor and entrepreneur, suggests that a “Digital Iron Curtain” is descending over the Western world. This is marked by developments like the FedNow quasi-CBDC, increased surveillance, attacks on financial exchanges, and expanded civil forfeiture. This comes amid a backdrop of economic challenges, including a sovereign debt crisis and a crash in bond prices. The U.S. is deeply in debt, and central banks may need bailouts, making it difficult to exit to cryptocurrencies. He argues that those who remain unaware of these issues are living in an illusion, and advises positioning oneself away from financially and socially troubled areas. Balaji concludes, “Because if 2008 was about bank bailouts, soon we’re going to see central bank bailouts. Reverse bailouts, where your currency is debased to bail out the government. QE wasn’t free.”