(Kitco News) - There is an ongoing shift in the West in how people view money, with persistent inflation and economic concerns driving interest in alternatives to the U.S. dollar, according to Jeremy Cordon, CEO of Goldback.
"People are really starting to feel inflation now," Cordon told Kitco News anchor Jeremy Szafron. "It was more of this sneaky long-term thing. People are noticing that they can't pay their rent, there's not a lot left over, things cost twice as much at the grocery store, and the packs of food they are used to buying are smaller."
This realization has sparked much interest in alternatives to the current fiat system. "People are buying into Bitcoin and gold. Also, the level of interest in Goldback has exploded over the last few years."
Goldback solves a 2,600-year-old problem in that gold can be spent in small, interchangeable increments, Cordon pointed out, as he shared the details behind the company's Florida launch.
It is a functional, sound money option that allows individuals, for the first time, to spend physical gold on small items like a smoothie or large purchases like a home remodel. "We're trying to skip the step where you sell your gold and go back into dollars," Cordon said. "We want people to keep their gold and just circulate the gold itself."
Cordon sees the trend toward gold as a long-term phenomenon. "This has been a trend for gold for 50 years," he said. "The dollar's lost over 99 percent of its value during that time."
Goldback's popularity has been growing exponentially. The company has introduced over a million first-time users to gold through its products.
For Cordon's insights on alternative systems outside the U.S. dollar, watch the video above.
Cordon highlighted that even billionaire investor Ray Dalio is urging investors to shift their focus towards "hard money" like Bitcoin and gold.
Blackrock is also advising investors to look at gold and Bitcoin in its 2025 global outlook, warning that the world is dividing into competing blocks, with many countries shifting their reserves out of the U.S. dollar and into gold.
While acknowledging the role of Bitcoin in the "de-dollarization" trend, Cordon sees Goldback as a more convenient alternative for everyday transactions. "Every gold back is unique. Every single one has a serial number," Cordon said. "There hasn't been a single counterfeit."
Goldback is currently available in six states, with plans to expand to more states in the future. The company recently launched pre-sales in Florida and observed a significant demand for larger denominations.
For more on goldbacks, watch the video above.
