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What the French Knew - And What It Means for You Today

There’s a reason gold is in the headlines. It’s not because of a quarterly earnings beat or a Fed press conference. It’s not because it just launched a new product or filed an IPO.

It’s because something bigger is stirring beneath the surface of the financial system, and gold is starting to reflect it.

In our latest video, Jan Skoyles breaks this down in full, tracing a story that stretches from the ships of 1960s France to the sovereign vaults of modern China. It’s a story that reveals why rising gold prices aren’t a green light to “take profits” -  they’re a red flag that the system is wobbling.

And it all starts with a little-known chapter of monetary history.

The Gold Ships of Paris

In the late 1960s, French President Charles de Gaulle began quietly sending ships to New York Harbor. Not to deliver wine or fine cheese -  but to collect gold.

Under the post-war Bretton Woods agreement, the U.S. had promised the world it would convert dollars into gold at $35 an ounce. Most nations took them at their word. France did not.

De Gaulle’s advisor, Jacques Rueff, had warned that the U.S. was printing too many dollars and exporting inflation. France acted. They converted paper claims into bullion, tonnes at a time. By 1971, they weren’t alone. The gold drain turned into a flood, and Nixon slammed the gold window shut, unilaterally ending the dollar’s tie to gold.

France didn’t sell at $35. Or $100. Because they weren’t buying gold to trade it.

They were buying to survive what came next.

Why You Own Gold (Hint: It’s Not for Profit)

Let’s fast forward.

Gold has broken through $3,000. Headlines are buzzing. And investors are asking: Is it time to sell?

But as Jan explains in the video - and as history reminds us -  that might be the wrong question.

Because gold isn’t just another asset class to trade in and out of. It doesn’t pay dividends. It doesn’t do earnings reports. It doesn’t play the game.

It’s the thing you hold when you don’t trust the game.

Gold doesn’t rise because things are going well. It rises because the mask is slipping. It rose in 2008 not because of recovery, but because the system cracked. It soared in 2020 not from confidence, but from chaos.

And now, in 2025, it’s warning again.

If you’re looking to “take gains,” ask yourself: what are you selling into?

Fiat currencies losing purchasing power every year? Overleveraged equities hoping for another rate cut? Real estate markets built on cheap money that’s no longer cheap?

Or perhaps there’s another path - one that doesn’t mean exiting the gold position entirely, but rather using it differently.

Watch Now

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