What To Do When You're Named Executor

What To Do When You're Named Executor

Maurie Backman  mSun, November 23, 2025  Moneywise

My aunt died and I’m shocked to learn I have to settle her estate. What to do when you're named executor

Most people need time to process things when a family member dies. But if you’ve been named executor in their will, you have to start processing immediately.

After all, you’re now legally responsible for the administration of their Estate.

As executor (alternatively known as personal representative or administrator depending on your state), you must ensure your relative’s finances are settled and their final wishes respected.

The weight of all that may trigger emotions besides grief. For example, shock — especially if your late relative named you the executor of their will without your prior knowledge.

You may feel overwhelmed and even resentful.

You can even refuse to take on the role, but if your relative named you because they trusted you above everyone else, you may feel obliged (1).

If you find yourself in this position, it’s a good idea to take a beat to sort out what you are and are not obliged to do.

Here is a more detailed breakdown of what this role entails (2).

The First Steps In The Probate Process

First, you need to obtain a copy of your relative's death certificate, which you can get from the funeral home or the county or state where their death occurred

If you don’t have a copy of the will, obtain one, read it thoroughly and file it in probate court in the county where your relative lived. Notify all beneficiaries of the will’s contents.

It’s common to hire an attorney to handle probate, which is the process of proving a will’s validity in court. If you do hire a lawyer, their legal costs will be covered by proceeds from the estate.

Probate is essential. You cannot distribute assets from your family member’s estate until the probate process is completed and you’ve settled all debts related to the estate.

This can be a lengthy and complex process, so it’s important to manage beneficiaries’ expectations. If conflicts break out, do your best to mediate the disagreements.

Settling A Late Relative’s Finances

TO READ MORE:  https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/aunt-died-m-shocked-learn-123000514.html

The ‘Biggest Crash In History’ Is Starting, How To Prepare Now

The ‘Biggest Crash In History’ Is Starting, How To Prepare Now

Jing Pan  Sat, November 29, 2025   Moneywise

Robert Kiyosaki Warns The ‘Biggest Crash In History’ Is Starting, Says Millions To ‘Lose Everything.’ How To Prepare Now

As markets push into their final stretch of 2025, “Rich Dad Poor Dad” author Robert Kiyosaki has issued a chilling new warning.  “BIGGEST CRASH IN HISTORY STARTING,” he wrote in a recent post on X (1).

According to Kiyosaki, this is the very downturn he’s been predicting for more than a decade — and he believes the fallout will be severe.

“In 2013 I published RICH DADs PROPHECY predicting the biggest crash in history was coming. Unfortunately that crash has arrived. It’s not just the US. Europe and Asia are crashing. AI will wipe out jobs and when jobs crash office and residential real estate crashes.”

At first glance, his warning may seem at odds with the U.S. stock market, where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq remain near record highs. But concerns about AI-driven job losses are widespread — and layoffs continue to dominate headlines (2).

The silver lining, according to Kiyosaki?

He believes this environment could create enormous opportunities for those who prepare.

“While millions will lose everything…. if you are prepared…this crash will make you richer,” he wrote.

So how would Kiyosaki prepare?

“Time to buy more gold, silver, Bitcoin and Ethereum,” he said.

Let’s take a closer look at these assets.

Precious metals

Kiyosaki has never been shy about his love for gold and silver — and in moments of crisis, he turns to them with even more conviction. His stance is clear: “I’m not buying gold because I like gold, I’m buying gold because I don’t trust the Fed,” he said in an interview back in 2021 (3).

Gold and silver have long been viewed as safe-haven assets. Unlike fiat currencies, they can’t be printed at will by central banks and their value isn’t tied to any single country or economy. That scarcity, combined with their history as a store of value, is why investors often flock to the metals during periods of inflation, economic turmoil or geopolitical instability — pushing prices higher.

This time, he’s putting special emphasis on silver.  “Silver is the best and the safest. Silver is $50 today. I predict silver will hit $70 soon and possibly $200 in 2026,” he wrote.

TO READ MORE:  https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/robert-kiyosaki-warns-biggest-crash-112900040.html

5 Things In Your Home That Could Be Worth A Fortune By 2030

Finance guru reveals 5 Things In Your Home That Could Be Worth A Fortune By 2030

Jill Schildhouse     Fri, October 10, 2025

Before you toss out that old tech or childhood toy, an investment pro says these everyday items could be worth thousands within the decade.

An investment expert is urging Americans to dig through their attics and garages—because some of what’s gathering dust could fund their retirement by 2030.

Adam Koprucki, founder of Real World Investor, says many people are unknowingly sitting on collectibles that are appreciating faster than traditional investments. “Most people throw away items that could pay for their retirement in just a few years,” he says. “The truth is, certain everyday objects sitting in your home might be worth more than your stock portfolio by 2030.”

Koprucki points to vintage tech, pop-culture collectibles, and nostalgia-fueled memorabilia as the next frontier for investors. The U.S. collectibles market hit $62 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow to $83.7 billion by 2030, according to data from Grand View Research.

1. Vintage tech

First-generation Apple products are leading the charge. “Original Apple products continue their rise in popularity among collectors,” Koprucki explained. “The first iPhone, released in 2007 for $499, now sells for more than $20,000 sealed in its box—and could easily surpass $50,000 by 2030.”

2. Toys, comics, and trading cards

From Star Wars action figures to Pokémon cards, nostalgia remains a gold mine. Koprucki says sealed Transformers toys from the 1980s can reach $20,000, while first-edition Harry Potter books that once cost under $20 now fetch over $50,000. Condition is everything—mint items in original packaging can be worth ten times more than used versions.

3. Vintage video games

TO READ MORE:  https://creators.yahoo.com/lifestyle/story/finance-guru-reveals-5-things-in-your-home-that-could-be-worth-a-fortune-by-2030-211315832.html

5 Everyday Money Habits That Quietly Drain Middle-Class Wealth

5 Everyday Money Habits That Quietly Drain Middle-Class Wealth

Cindy Lamothe   Tue, November 25, 2025  GOBankingRates

We all know money can slip through our fingers — but sometimes it’s not flashy splurges or big mistakes that do the damage.

It’s the little, everyday habits that quietly chip away at your hard-earned wealth. If you’ve ever wondered why your bank account doesn’t quite grow despite steady paychecks, you’re not alone.

 “Increasing prices have led to the survival debt of most Americans,” said Jeffrey Hensel, broker associate at North Coast Financial. “The change is usually nuanced to the middle class, and it starts with small changes in their lifestyle, which gradually escalate into huge financial burdens.”

Let’s take a closer look at some common money habits that could be holding back your financial growth — and what to do about them.

Credit Card Debt

According to Olivier Wagner, founder and CEO of 1040 Abroad, credit cards can be a very efficient help in managing one’s flow of income and obtaining needed benefits but they can also do much to ruin one’s wealth if they are not used with care.

His recommendation? Always pay your bill in full from month to month so as to escape from interest.

“Always charge your purchases to your credit cards that you can pay long before the bill comes due,” Wagner advised.

Stay on Top of Subscriptions

“Most people have a problem with not paying attention to their bank statements, because the small charges are not worth looking up individually,” said Wagner.

As a result, he said all together they will amount to hundreds and thousands of dollars over the course of a year. Wagner recommended regularly checking your bank statements to cancel those subscriptions that you do incur charges for.

Checking into this periodically will free up hundreds of dollars a year for you to allocate for investment purposes for you or funds to put into savings.

Avoid Impulse Purchases

TO READ MORE:  https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/5-everyday-money-habits-quietly-165505276.html

5 Brutal Truths About Building Wealth

5 Brutal Truths About Building Wealth

Cindy Lamothe  Mon, November 24, 2025 GOBankingRates

Building wealth isn’t all sunshine and Instagram-worthy moments. While everyone loves talking about side hustles, passive income and shiny financial freedom, the truth is a bit grittier. There are no shortcuts, no magic formulas and, yes, some tough lessons along the way.

Here are some brutal truths about building wealth that will help you in the long run.

1. It’s a Long, Slow Game

“Building wealth is unfortunately about playing the long, slow game,” explained Brett Horowitz, principal and wealth manager at Evensky & Katz / Foldes Financial Wealth Management.

He said most people know someone who struck it rich by buying Apple stock 30 years ago or Nvidia stock 10 years ago. “The truth is that those investors had to sustain long time periods where they either lost money, or barely made money,” he said.

Both companies were mostly irrelevant at some point and investors who held those stocks were extremely fortunate, or proficient, but mostly fortunate, to have made so much money holding those stocks. “Picking individual stocks is often a recipe for failure and the best way to make money is through hard earned saving,” he said.

2. Trading Is Hazardous to Your Wealth

While some may view trading as a way to build wealth, it may not be a good option. According to Horowitz, the more often you trade, the worse you do. “Or as we say ‘your portfolio is like a bar of soap, the more you play with it, the smaller it gets,'” he said.

He noted that overconfidence can explain high trading levels and the resulting poor performance of individual investors. “Our central message is that trading is hazardous to your wealth,” he said.

Horowitz explained that trading typically involves fees and taxes, so the more you trade, the more these costs drag down the portfolio’s return.

3. Your Fear Is Costing You Big

TO READ MORE:  https://finance.yahoo.com/news/5-brutal-truths-building-wealth-160605824.html

“Oops! We’re a Major Silver Producer Now”

“Oops! We’re a Major Silver Producer Now”

Notes From the Field By James Hickman (Simon Black)  November 20, 2025

When mining superintendent Marcus Daly arrived in Butte, Montana in the late 1870s to evaluate a cluster of silver prospects, it was a mundane business trip— the mad western gold rush was over by then.

The area was known for its patchy silver veins, and Daly’s job was to decide whether there were still any mines worth buying.  All the ‘experts’ thought the boom was over. Gold and silver had fallen out of favor... and mines were selling for less than the value of the dirt.

So when Marcus Daly went underground at a modest site called the Anaconda, he noticed the ore didn’t look like a typical silver deposit... and that something much bigger was hiding below.

Daly pushed for the property’s purchase—about $30,000 which would be about $1 million today. His reasoning? Beneath the silver veins, Daly had spotted a massive copper system.

The timing couldn’t have been better for a nation racing into an industrial age.

Telegraph lines, electrical wiring, motors, early power systems — America was devouring copper as fast as anyone could pull it out of the ground. And Daly’s discovery pushed the Anaconda operation from a forgettable silver claim into one of the engines of American industrial growth.

For years, that copper carried what became the Anaconda Copper Mining Company.

Output scaled, profits climbed, and Butte became synonymous with industrial metal.

But the silver never went away. As miners pulled the copper out of the ground, they were also extracting silver... which was sort of ‘in the way’ of the copper.

At first the silver was just an afterthought; Anaconda was a copper company, plain and simple. They just happened to mine some silver, almost begrudgingly, as an afterthought. And throughout the early 20th century and the Roaring 20s, nobody paid attention.

Then the Great Depression hit.

Copper demand—and prices—collapsed almost overnight as factories slowed, construction stalled, and electrical projects were shelved indefinitely.

Anaconda took a beating like everyone else—but it didn’t fold.

The “accidental” silver kept generating revenue even as the industrial economy stalled... and that silver revenue kept Anaconda alive when competitors were going out of business left and right.

It gave the company the diversification it needed to survive the worst phases of the worst commodity cycle — and stay standing when others didn’t.

This is far from an isolated incident—the mining industry is no stranger to these necessary pivots.

And it’s also not just a quirky footnote— it’s the kind of setup that gives investors a chance to buy into something most investors write-off.

For example, the latest edition of our premium investment research newsletter featured a company that ordinarily mines a critical industrial metal—one that’s necessary for all modern technology.

Funny thing is, this company also just happens to produce gold and silver.

They never set out to be precious metals miners. In fact, the company has been extremely successful in its core industrial metal business.

But with gold and silver prices hovering near all-time highs, the company is now minting profits from precious metals. Revenue is through the roof, but shareholders of the business are basically getting all of it for free.

That’s because, right now, the company’s stock is trading at a fairly low multiple JUST based on its industrial mining revenue... which means the market is valuing all the gold and silver production at zero. That’s completely absurd.

Overall this company trades at just FOUR times earnings. At that valuation, even if it were just an industrial producer, it would still be undervalued.

But it also produces enough silver to be close to a top 10 producer in the world.

There’s no rational reason for this business to be selling for such a cheap price. Yet the recent selloff in gold and silver prices only made it cheaper. Some mining companies fell 30%, even though they're still raking in record profits.

To your freedom,         James Hickman  Co-Founder, Schiff Sovereign LLC

https://www.schiffsovereign.com/trends/oops-were-a-major-silver-producer-now-153915/?inf_contact_key=f0a788da85fc4d6a6683a85762244fc59ee4b048ce23149d13a848abfdc3679b

3 Ways To Overcome Fear of Spending in Retirement, According to a Financial Expert

3 Ways To Overcome Fear of Spending in Retirement, According to a Financial Expert

T. Woods   GOBankingRates

James Canole is the founder of the financial advice website Root Financial Partners, and is a CFP professional/financial advisor whose podcast, “Ready for Retirement,” helps guide people toward a comfortable and prosperous nest egg for their retirement years.

On a recent episode of his podcast series, Canole spoke to a retiree facing a fundamental challenge: how to comfortably spend money in your retirement.

Canole introduced his guest, “Ben,” as a man who “saved aggressively” so that he could retire at the age of 53. However, while Ben is enjoying his retirement, he’s found it incredibly difficult to spend money on certain things.

Growing up with a single mom, Ben came to appreciate what “a very important channel for us” money was, and how much he needed to value and appreciate it. As he became older, and aggressively saved in order to build a portfolio upon which he could retire early, his value of money only increased.

As such, Ben has found that the major issue for his retirement has been the struggle to give himself permission to spend the money that he saved and earned. “I hate to say that I’m denying myself,” he lamented, “but I oftentimes feel that that’s the case right now.”

Making the transition from “a saving to a spending mindset” was a problem he never anticipated, but it is one he has had to confront now, to the point that his retirement spending actually continues to decrease. Through Ben’s discussion with Canole, however, the two worked out ways to overcome the fear of spending and allow Ben to enjoy his golden years.

Give Yourself Permission To Spend

You’ve worked hard for your retirement, and you’ve planned ahead. This is the moment you’ve been saving for. If you don’t spend on yourself now, when will you?

Commit to a Spending Decision

Once you book a vacation, or plan a big purchase, stick to it. Ben noted that he booked an expensive vacation for he and his family, and “once I made the decision, then I didn’t regret it at all and I kept thinking that I purposely set up those funds at the beginning of the year so I could do things like that.”

TO READ MORE:  https://finance.yahoo.com/news/3-ways-overcome-fear-spending-120021438.html

10 Harsh Money Lessons That You Never Learned in School

10 Harsh Money Lessons That You Never Learned in School

By Martin Dasko / STUDENOMICS

“They should teach personal finance in college.”

“I wish I learned more about money in school instead of studying all that useless stuff.”

I’ve seen a variation of this message on social media over the years. Personal finance is one of those topics that we have to figure out on our own as we go through life, and it can be highly frustrating. This is why I wanted to look at what you likely weren’t taught about money as a high school or college student that you should know.

Here’s what college and high school never taught you about money that you need to know.

Money lessons you didn't learn in school

I can’t tell you how many times a reader or friend complained about how they learned nothing about finances in school. You have to figure out credit scores, mortgages, credit cards, investing, retirement planning, budgeting, being able to afford a Friday night with soaring inflation, and career advancement all on your own.

You don’t learn much about personal finance and money management as you go through the education system. You go from trying to get by as a broke college student to being thrust into the real world, where you suddenly have to worry about paying your bills, all while trying to figure out how to balance between saving for your retirement one day and trying to afford all of these weddings that you have to attend.

Let’s go over what every young person should learn about money right now that you probably won’t learn in college or high school. These are ten money lessons that should be taught to all young people.

Lesson #1: The World Is Designed To Separate You From Your Money.

“I firmly believe that everything in this world is designed to separate you from your money.”

An economics professor dropped this gem on us one morning (so I technically learned this in college). Since hearing this, I can’t stop thinking about it because it’s accurate. He described how everything is happening around us to take our money.

There will always be something to spend money on. You can’t scroll social media for more than two seconds without being sold something. There are ads for everything, and the ads are targeted to promote something you likely discussed an hour earlier or thought of in your mind.

What can you do about this?

Save first. Always pay yourself first. Have money automatically come off your paycheck. Don’t attempt to save when you don’t spend after getting paid. Save first.

Hide/lock your money. I call this the Houdini System. I hide my money in an investment account and ensure I cannot access it.

Stop saving your credit card details with every online retailer. It’s ridiculously easy to spend money these days. Don’t save your credit card information with Amazon. You don’t always need everything delivered to you in minutes.

Set priorities. I’ve learned that you can have anything you want, but you can’t have everything you want.

Whatever you do, never rely on willpower. Hide your money and set it aside. The world is designed to take your money from you. On top of finding ways to keep more of your money, you also have to ensure that you don’t get scammed. The video below covers this…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=15&v=C0BfZKUKIVY&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.studenomics.com%2F&source_ve_path=Mjg2NjY&feature=emb_logo

Lesson #2: You Must Figure Out Where Your Money’s Going.

“I have no idea where my paychecks go.”

I’ve heard this from many friends over the years, and it’s always startling. I understand why this happens, though. Life comes at you fast, and everything that you want to do is expensive. Suddenly, you’re a week removed from payday and have no idea where your money went.

You don’t have to track every penny, but knowing where your money’s going is essential. You don’t want to be confused as to why you’re broke. You have to figure out where your money’s going.

How do you figure out where your money’s going?

TO READ MORE:  https://www.studenomics.com/after-college/money-school/

What To Do Before A Catastrophe Strikes

What To Do Before A Catastrophe Strikes

Retired professor, 75, fumbled to learn her finances when her husband died.

Moneywise   Vawn Himmelsbach  Tue, November 18, 2025

When Alice Stone Nakhimovsky’s husband, Alexander, passed away unexpectedly last year from a brain aneurysm, she lost more than her partner. She also lost every detail of their financial life.

The 75-year-old retired professor had written 11 books, yet she didn’t understand the language of finance. Her husband had always handled that side of things.

“It’s mostly because I have no interest in learning about investing,” Nakhimovsky told The Wall Street Journal (1).

She knew they had saved more than $1 million, but she didn’t understand how it was allocated or even how much she could safely spend each month to make it last through retirement. She also knew she was “a sitting duck” if she didn’t figure it out.

It took her a year to get everything sorted, and she now regrets not doing it earlier. After all, she said, “catastrophe can strike at any time.”

What’s At Stake

Women tend to live longer than men, which means they’re more likely to be widowed and more likely to need a bigger nest egg.

Life expectancy in the U.S. is 75.8 years for males and 81.1 years for females (2). A woman also has a 7-in-10 chance of outliving her husband, either due to life expectancy or marriage age gaps (3).

Yet, while 30% of high-earning heterosexual women in the U.S. are now the primary breadwinners, “less than half prefer that role,” according to UBS’s 2023 Own Your Worth report. Only half of those breadwinners engage in short- and long-term financial decisions (4).

“Less than half, 49%, of women primary earners in heterosexual relationships say they prefer that arrangement, compared to 87% of men breadwinners,” the report found.

TO READ MORE:  https://finance.yahoo.com/news/retired-professor-75-fumbled-learn-163000960.html

Can You Just Keep The Cash If You Stumble Upon A Cache?

Can You Just Keep The Cash If You Stumble Upon A Cache?

Danielle Antosz  Mon, November 17, 2025   Moneywise

Ohio man bought $1K house, then found $10K in the basement

In a world where stories about hidden cash often end in legal headaches or ethical questions, one Ohio man showed how doing the right thing can turn a surprise find into something more meaningful.

Walter Castanedo of Toledo bought a rundown home in early 2024 with plans to renovate it. The three-bedroom, one-bath house cost him only $1,000. While clearing out the basement, he uncovered something he never expected: old envelopes stuffed with $100 bills. In total, he found about $10,000 hidden between paving stones.

"I just kind of felt like 'Whoa'," Castanedo told WTOL 11 reporter Steve Iwanek in early 2025. "Because you read about this stuff, but you never actually see it. And then when it's right there in front of you, it's kind of hard to process.”

Most of the bills appeared to be from the early 1980s, with the most recent from 1981, which suggested the money had been hidden for decades.

Finding treasure

Castanedo discovered five envelopes with money inside while gutting the basement of the small home. Some were wedged under bricks where he believed a potbelly stove once sat.

"They were black, but you could just make out when I shined a light on it,” Castanedo explained. “There were 100s in the corners."

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics inflation calculator, $10,000 in January of 1981 would be worth $36,276.44 as of December 2024.

But the real surprise wasn’t the cash itself. After the shock wore off, Castanedo tried to track down someone connected to the home’s past. With a few calls, he reached Andrew Aranyosi, who lived in the house from 1946 to 1967. Aranyosi believed his dad, Andrew Sr., likely hid the money.

"I talked to him (Aranyosi) and I said, 'Look, I found something in your basement," Castanedo told WTOL11. "I found some money in your basement and I'd like to split it with you. "

Aranyosi was shocked. He suspected his dad had likely hidden the cash, but he never knew about it.

"My dad built parts of the home," Aranyosi said. "He added a whole new bedroom on the back of the house above the kitchen, and that's actually the bedroom I was in. The $10,000 — I would say my father definitely tucked that somewhere in the bricks or wherever."

TO READ MORE:  https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/ohio-man-bought-1k-house-123000239.html

4 Things You Don’t Know About Your Money

I’m a Financial Expert: 4 Things You Don’t Know About Your Money

Laura Beck   Fri, August 16, 2024   GOBankingRates

You might think you’ve got a handle on your finances, but there’s probably a thing or two you don’t understand.

GOBankingRates spoke with financial experts to uncover some surprising truths about money that many people overlook. Carlos Rodriguez, director of financial planning at Edelman Financial Engines, pointed to EFE’s 2023 Everyday Wealth in America report, which indicated that 46% of Americans cite personal finances as their top source of stress. That emphasizes the importance of effective financial management for overall well-being.

From investment strategies to the power of small savings, these insights could change the way you think about your hard-earned cash.

Here are four things you (probably) don’t know about your money.

Earning passive income doesn't need to be difficult. You can start this week.

Being Too Conservative Can Cost You Big Time

If you’re the type to keep your money tucked safely away in a savings account, you might want to reconsider.

Robert R. Johnson, Ph.D., CFA, professor of finance at Creighton University’s Heider College of Business, has some eye-opening data to share.

“Being conservative with investments over time is extremely costly,” he said. “From 1926 through 2023, government bonds earned an average return of 5.1%. One dollar invested in government bonds at the beginning of 1926 would have grown to $133 by the end of 2023.”

Sounds pretty good, right? Well, hold onto your hats. Johnson continued, “Over that same time period, large stocks (think S&P 500) earned 10.1% compounded annually. That same dollar invested in an index of large cap stocks would have grown to $14,568 by the end of 2023.”

That’s not a typo, folks. We’re talking about a difference of over $14,000 from a single dollar. As Johnson put it, “A 5% annual difference in returns results in an astronomical difference in terminal wealth.”

You Can’t Save Your Way to Wealth – You Need To Invest

If you think squirreling away money in a savings account is your ticket to wealth, think again. Johnson busts this common myth wide open.

“One of the biggest money myths is that you can save your way to wealth,” he said. “The wealthy save and invest. The middle class, too often, simply save. Unfortunately, it isn’t enough that people simply save. That is a necessary condition for building wealth, but not a sufficient condition for wealth accumulation.”

Instead, it’s all about investing. “Individuals need to be taught to invest for retirement and not to save for retirement,” Johnson said. “The surest way to build true long-term wealth and higher net worth is to invest in the stock market.”

Of course, as with all wealth building, the earlier the better. Why? Well, the glory of compound interest — which is interest calculated on both the initial principal and all of the earlier accumulated interest.

Small, Consistent Investments Can Add Up to Big Money

Think you need a fortune to start investing? Grace Moser, owner of the women’s lifestyle blog Chasing Foxes, disagrees.

“The thing I wish people knew about their money is if you set it and forget it, it will grow,” she said. “I think people believe that they need to have a huge amount of money to start investing, but it’s just not true.”

To Read More:  https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/m-financial-expert-4-things-170009313.html

Record High Debt = Record High Gold Price

Record High Debt = Record High Gold Price

Notes From the Field By James Hickman (Simon Black)  November 11, 2025

Barrick Mining Corporation—one of the world’s largest and most established gold producers—just reported its third quarter earnings yesterday— and it was an absolute blowout.

The company reported third quarter profit of $1.3 billion, nearly triple last year’s Q3 earnings.

And for the first nine months of 2025, Earnings per Share is up a whopping 132% over the same period last year. Free Cash Flow is up an astonishing 176%.

The company further announced that they’re raising the dividend by 25% and expanding the company’s share buyback authorization by an additional $500 million, after already repurchasing $1 billion worth of shares under the prior program.

And what’s perhaps even more striking is that these record profits were based on an average gold price of $3,200. This means that the company’s Q4 earnings (which we’re nearly halfway through) should be MUCH higher given that gold has averaged $4,041 so far this quarter.

Our readers won’t be surprised to hear any of this; we’ve been saying for the past few years that gold was going to go much higher— specifically because foreign governments and central banks have been buying gold by the metric ton to diversify their strategic reserves away from the US dollar.

This trend isn’t going away.

Between the government shutdown fiasco, the rising $38+ trillion US national debt (up $500 BILLION just in the last six weeks), extreme political dysfunction in Congress and the courts, etc., foreign governments and central banks are continuing to literally buy tons of gold, even at record high prices.

We also wrote that gold companies (including miners like Barrick) would benefit substantially from rising gold prices.

So, just as we predicted, Barrick (among other gold miners) is raking in record profits, and its stock price has doubled this year alone— outpacing gains from Oracle, Nvidia, Palantir, and pretty much every major large cap company in the market.

But here’s what’s really amazing— despite such stellar performance, many of these gold companies are still cheap.

Barrick stock, for example, is near its all-time high. Yet the company is still valued at less than NINE times forward earnings— and that’s assuming gold doesn’t go up further from here.

(And even if the gold price tanks, Barrick will still be a profitable, dividend-paying, modestly valued business. Remember, Barrick’s record profits are based on $3,400 gold!)

Smaller gold companies— the ones that we focus on in our premium investment research— are even cheaper.

One of the gold miners we’ve featured is already up 4x this year. Yet it still trades at just 3.5 times forward earnings. The company is extremely shareholder-friendly and has a pristine balance sheet with zero net debt. Oh, and did I mention they pay a substantial dividend?

The gold price could collapse to less than $3,000 and this company would still be wildly profitable.

Could that happen? It’s possible. Even during the 1970s when gold rose from $35 to $850, gold suffered a major pullback in 1975. The pullback was temporary, and gold rose over 8x from there.

That’s because the fundamentals driving gold’s rise during the 1970s hadn’t really changed.

After Richard Nixon formally ended the Bretton Woods system in August 1971, foreign governments and central banks rapidly began selling their US dollars for gold.

As the decade progressed, foreigners became increasingly concerned about US deficits, government dysfunction (Watergate in 1973), global instability, waning US power, and more.

And despite a brief pullback in gold prices, this trend continued until the early 1980s, when the election of Ronald Reagan restored confidence in America’s might and fiscal discipline. It was only at that point that gold prices started to fall.

This same trend is unfolding today, and it’s not hard to understand: the record high US national debt = record high gold price.

Foreign governments and central banks remain deeply concerned about America’s fiscal condition, and gold is one of the few assets available for them to diversify their US dollar holdings.

Just like in the 1970s, we expect this trend to continue until Congress proves that it can act like  grownups and be fiscally responsible.

In the meantime, we anticipate gold— and gold companies— to continue to perform very well. Again, many are posting record profits yet are still insanely undervalued. We do not expect this anomaly to last.

To your freedom,    James Hickman   Co-Founder, Schiff Sovereign LLC

 https://www.schiffsovereign.com/trends/record-high-debt-record-high-gold-price-153870/?inf_contact_key=469490d20eb1a2068aaffcd8431b11d7266def61f88c0e3dcc6731a9f494e737

Podcast: These Three Central Banks are SELLING Gold

Podcast: These Three Central Banks are SELLING Gold

Notes From the Field By  James Hickman (Simon Black)  November 12, 2025

We sincerely hope the House of Representatives can pull itself together and get the government back open this week.

Not because we love federal bureaucracy—but because this shutdown is embarrassing, and it continues to chip away at the rapidly declining confidence that foreign governments and central banks have in the United States.

This matters. Foreign governments and central banks collectively own $10+ trillion of US government bonds and other agency securities.

And given how rapidly the national debt is rising, the Treasury Department needs every lender they can get.

Up until recently, foreigners have always happily stocked up on US government bonds— which were traditionally viewed as THE world’s “risk free” asset.

But over the past few years, they’ve seen endless financial chaos and political dysfunction.

They watched Joe Biden shake hands with thin air. They watched the humiliating US withdrawal of Afghanistan. They watched millions of migrants stream across the US border with impunity, then be showered with taxpayer benefits. They watched TWO assassination attempts on a Presidential candidate.

Then, even after last year’s election, they watched the richest guy in the world willingly roll up his sleeves to help eliminate federal waste and cut the deficit— only to get chased out of town by politicians who are addicted to fraudulent spending.

They’ve watched extreme political dysfunction, with two sides who can’t agree on anything... including the most basic task of keeping the government open.

They’ve watched deficits grow and the national debt spiral to $38 trillion. They watched the debt grow by HALF A TRILLION dollars just over the past SIX WEEKS when the government was supposedly closed.

In short, if you were a foreign government or central bank, there’s little chance you would look at Congress and think, “these are serious, responsible people.”

Quite the opposite. In fact you would probably think that it’s time to start cutting your Treasury holdings and back away from the US dollar. After all, the United States Congress doesn’t exactly look “risk free” any longer.

Foreigners understand that a time is coming—sooner rather than later—when the US dollar will no longer be the dominant global reserve currency. Many central banks still hold nearly 100% of their reserves in US dollars. They know they need to diversify.

And we’ve written about this many times before— the #1 asset that they’re purchasing right now is gold.

It’s not because these foreign central bankers and finance ministers are irrational gold bugs. Instead, they understand that gold is nearly the only asset that (1) is universally accepted, (2) carries zero counterparty risk, and (3) has a large enough market to absorb hundreds of billions of dollars in capital flows.

That’s why, from Poland to Ghana to Kazakhstan, central banks have been buying gold in record quantities. It’s not just China.

China is the most desperate. They hold hundreds of billions in US dollar assets as part of their strategic financial reserves, and the Communist Party is extremely concerned—because they see a real possibility that they could be at war with their own borrower in the future.

Only three central banks were selling gold last quarter—and their reasons are easy to understand.

Russia was one—not because they love the dollar. But because they need to fund a war. Frozen out of the global financial system, gold has become almost a medium of exchange for the Russian government.

Singapore was another. Most central banks only buy strategically; they don’t try to turn a profit. Not Singapore. Their financial institutions are filled with sharp traders who would sell high into record trading volume, with the intent to buy gold back at a lower price.

In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if the Singaporean government picked up more gold during the recent price dip earlier this month.

The third was Uzbekistan, whose central bank already holds about 80% of its total reserves in gold. With gold prices up, the value of their holdings ballooned—so selling some is simply a way to re-balance.

The problem for most countries is that they have too many dollars and not enough gold. Uzbekistan is the lone example of a country with too much gold and not enough dollars. So their gold sales, while unusual, make sense.

We keep talking about this because it truly is one of the most important trends of our time.

The US government's fiscal condition is atrocious. Almost no one in Washington is willing to take it seriously. But foreign governments and central banks are—and that's exactly why they’re buying gold.

That trend won’t reverse unless, miraculously, everyone in Washington starts treating the national debt like the emergency it actually is.

I’m not holding my breath.

That’s why we believe $5,000 to $10,000 gold is a completely valid future scenario—and why mining companies, precious metals producers, and real asset businesses are so well positioned.

We discuss several of these miners in today’s podcast, including Barrick, Newmont, and Franco-Nevada.

And we also highlight some of the overlooked smaller gold companies that, right now, are just absurd bargains.

You can listen to the full podcast here.

For the audio-only version, check out our online post here.

Finally, you can find the podcast transcript for your convenience, here.

To your freedom,  James Hickman  Co-Founder, Schiff Sovereign LLC

 PS – We write about this because we’re extremely proud of what we do.

We provide extremely high-quality research, and the results speak for themselves. Four of our precious metals companies are up 3-4x, even after recent pullbacks. Another seven are up 35–150%.

https://www.schiffsovereign.com/trends/these-three-central-banks-are-selling-gold-153876/?inf_contact_key=c89bf4b25fb260fc19f66f76be78e8dc3f5d4753c412dd34813a23b06ce38f2e