How have you invested your net worth, in % ?

Not really of any interest without the context of rough net worth. i.e. 4,5, low 6, high 6, 7 figures

That's interesting buggerthebanks.

Gold is arguably expensive at the mo, however I assume that you believe it will go higher pending possible forthcoming turmoil?

I used to be a bit of a "goldbug" but now I'm no longer nearly as convinced, although I try to keep an open mind.  I was quite sure that our entire financial system was doomed and was virtually on the point of collapse, largely caused by the practice of "fractional reserve lending".  I was quite heavily influenced by various online "gurus" such as Jim Sinclair , Turd Ferguson (yes, the name is correct !) , Peter Schiff  and plenty of others.  

For a while , these guys convinced me that the Gold (and Silver) markets were rigged to the downside by the big banks and bullion houses, a theory which I now consider to be total bull. 

 Hey buggerthebanks Gold may well be a good investment right now , and you are probably a lot smarter than me (most people are  ) , but just thought I'd mention this in passing.  Be careful, and ensure that you are not succumbing to any sort of "confirmation bias" as I now believe I was.

We actually don't have fractional reserve lending in this country.  I was of the opinion we do, but you'll be amazed what the BoE are prepared to impart if you only ask them.  For the record, I believe what we have is far worse.  QE, though: that's a different matter entirely.  Try asking the BoE about that.  They really DO NOT want people poking their nose into that hole.  I only have circumstantial evidence at present, but it's a giant con.


I am firmly of the belief that our current monetary system is on the brink of collapse.  History tells us there are few ways out of such a circumstance.  One way out would (of course) be an actual collapse, at which time gold will come into its own & protect my wealth (such that I have).  Another would be via inflation (this (to me) seems most likely), & again, gold should serve me well here.


I don't believe money on deposit is safe (the FSCS is woefully under-funded & I've read the BRRD).  Gold will always be worth something.  "Money" on the other hand, is not.  Our monetary system is insolvent by design because it serves the people who run the system very well, but debt-based monetary systems cannot endure forever.  I've had a very enjoyable last two years, spending my modest hard-earned wealth on things I've previously deprived myself of (I'm no longer a young man).  What I don't spend goes into gold.  I take great comfort knowing that what I have left is safe (certainly safer than in a bank, bond, stock or unit trust).  Yes, property is always worth something, too, but I have one of those: I live in it

I guess that guy could be a bit of a s**t.

Sorry, I couldn’t resist that, seriously I believe that gold has a place in every portfolio (5%-10%) as an "insurance" for the same reasons as buggerthebanks .

p2pindependentforum.com/post/126835

You may be interested to know that since the date of your linked post  (6th July 2016) , Gold has fallen by  9.4%  and Bitcoin has skyrocketed by 288%   (both in GBP terms).

Now I'm not saying that this trend is necessarily set to continue, and also take your point about there being a place for Gold in a balanced portfolio, but there's no denying that anyone who has held Bitcoin over the last  year will be a very happy bunny. Unfortunately I'm not a member of that happy group ! 

I’m only too well aware of the performance of gold vs bitcoin and also it’s price today compared with 2011!

However, I take the same view as buggerthebanks that “debt-based monetary systems cannot endure forever” and believe that gold will prove to be good insurance when the next financial crisis occurs.