I just realized something quite interesting about gold. If you compare the gold price in 1982 with the present from a real purchasing power perspective, the gold peak has never been higher than that year. What exactly does that mean?

In 1982, 1 ounce of gold could buy a small house. At that time, the amount of money in circulation wasn’t much, so gold was very "expensive" relative to the monetary scale. Today, gold has risen to $5,600 per ounce, much higher in nominal terms. But a similar house now costs around $500,000. This means that 1 ounce of gold today can buy LESS — about 16% less — compared to 1 ounce of gold in 1982 when measured by real purchasing power.

Why is that? Because the USD is printed faster than gold’s price increases. Continuous money issuance causes its value to decline. In other words, gold’s value based on real purchasing power in 1982 is still higher than today.

What is the consequence of printing money faster than assets appreciate? Asset owners sensitive to new money become very wealthy very quickly. In Vietnam during the 1990s, real estate was that asset. But those who only held gold to preserve value remained stationary. And those holding cash fell behind. In a constantly developing society, standing still also means losing.

As money continues to be printed, "high prices" become normal. You’ll see 20 billion VND houses no longer shocking, 5 billion VND cars normal, and $10,000 per ounce gold not unusual. But the danger is wages don’t keep up. The feeling that "everything is getting more expensive" is actually money losing value, not assets naturally becoming more expensive.

Buying gold only helps preserve asset value, but doesn’t make you richer within the dollar monetary system. In fact, you might even fall behind as the money supply continues to expand.

So, how to escape this situation? You need to find an asset with more resilience and sustainable growth than gold. Not only to preserve value but also to increase your position within an expanding monetary system. That’s why, currently (at $78.2K, +1.36%), Bitcoin becomes a more interesting choice. It’s not just for preserving value like gold, but also has the potential for superior growth as the monetary system continues to expand.