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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Maddog" data-source="post: 469013" data-attributes="member: 5355"><h2>The Small Gold Bar Shortage Has Begun </h2>In Tokyo, Japan’s largest bullion dealer, Tanaka Kikinzoku, just suspended sales of its 5-, 10-, and 20-gram gold bars. Lines stretched five hours long outside its Ginza store. Mike draws a historical parallel: this same pattern unfolded in 1980, when gold soared to record highs and buyers wrapped around city blocks, waiting for their chance to get in. Once again, it’s happening — and not just in Japan. Retail investors worldwide are finding small bars harder to source, even as larger denominations remain available. <h3>Central Banks Are Quietly Cornering the Market </h3>While retail demand tightens, central banks are moving even faster. According to Mike, world central banks bought another 15 tons of gold in August, marking 27 months of net buying in the last 28. That’s not normal market behavior — that’s accumulation on an institutional scale. Tether, the world’s largest stablecoin issuer, added 19 tons to its balance sheet in just the first half of 2025 — roughly equivalent to what China’s central bank purchased during the same period. Gold is being removed from circulation, month after month, by entities that rarely sell.</blockquote>