Silver market has recently been quite intense—prices have approached $80 per ounce, with a 170% increase throughout 2025. This industrial metal, once overshadowed by the glow of gold, has suddenly become a global focus.

Even Elon Musk has come out saying, "This is a problem. Silver is a necessity in many industrial processes."

On the surface, it appears to be just commodity price fluctuations, but the reality is far more complex.

The real pressure comes from the supply chain itself. China will implement export controls in January 2026, and approximately 60% of global silver refining operations require licenses—this directly bottlenecks the global supply chain. Coupled with five consecutive years of structural shortages, the market is expected to face a demand gap of about 250 million ounces.

What does this mean? It means manufacturing costs are rising across the board. Tesla's electric vehicles, solar panels, Starlink satellites, AI data centers—these future industries all rely on silver. Demand will not decrease; instead, it continues to grow due to new energy transitions and technological upgrades.

So you'll see electric vehicle prices rise, green energy project costs surge, and chip manufacturing become more difficult—these are not just numbers on an exchange, but real inflation pressures felt in everyone's wallets.

Interestingly, while traditional financial systems seem overwhelmed when dealing with supply chain disruptions, the blockchain world is trying to develop new solutions. This is also why some institutions are beginning to explore the potential of blockchain in commodity liquidity and risk hedging. Crises often mean a restructuring of old systems, and new technological opportunities arise from this.