Basel III - Central Banks Show Gold Has No Risk

April Fools’ Day might be one to remember this year. I’m not talking about a prank that may ormay not occur. I’m talking about what happens on March 31 – Basel III goes into full effect.What is Basel III? Investopedia’s quick definition is this: “Basel III is a set of internationalbanking regulations developed by the Bank for International Settlements in order to promotestability in the international financial system. The purpose of Basel III is to reduce the ability ofbanks to damage the economy by taking on excess risk.”So, what does that mean for gold and silver? You may have heard some say that gold and silverare volatile or risky and not a long-term investment, but how are they considered for theworld’s central banks? According to an article published by the Bank for InternationalSettlements, “Gold bullion held in own vaults or on an allocated basis to the extent backed bybullion liabilities can be treated as cash and therefore risk-weighted at 0%.”It seems that those who view gold and silver as risky, volatile and not a long-term investmentare on their own. If the central banks across the world view gold and silver as a 0% risk-weighted asset, I tend to agree with them.We also must wonder if this new banking requirement – Basel III – going into effect this year iswhy central banks bought more gold bullion in 2018 than any time since 1967, which was priorto the U.S. ending the gold standard.There is only $3 trillion worth of gold in the world. The silver market is even smaller. It doesn’ttake much for the price of gold and silver to skyrocket. With these new banking regulationsgoing into full effect this month, I would say the biggest risk of all is to be positionedimproperly. I recommend following the path of the world’s central banks and securing your andyour client’s wealth with gold and silver before it’s too late.