Last year's battle for safe-haven assets quietly made precious metals the biggest winners. Gold and silver easily outperformed traditional defensive tools like the Swiss franc, Japanese yen, and government bonds. What is driving this trend? The answer points to central banks around the world—they are increasingly interested in precious metals.

Data released by the World Gold Council is striking: 43% of surveyed central banks said they would increase their gold reserves, and 95% believe their official gold holdings will continue to grow over the next 12 months. This is not a random fluctuation but a systemic shift.

International market analyst Jorge Ángel Hack pointed out the underlying logic—since the 2008 crisis, confidence in fiat currencies has been gradually declining. At that time, developed countries embarked on large-scale debt issuance cycles, and central banks seemed to be signaling through their actions: physical assets are the true safe haven. This shift in confidence from traditional finance to crypto assets is reshaping the entire market ecosystem.