(Kitco News) - While central banks have attracted significant attention for their continued appetite for gold, they are not the only buyers in the marketplace. Affluent investors—those with at least $100,000 in assets—are also showing increased interest in the precious metal, according to a study from HSBC.
On Thursday, one of the world’s largest banks published its annual Affluent Investor Snapshot, which revealed that affluent investors have doubled their exposure to alternative assets, including gold. At the same time, investors have reduced their cash allocations by nearly 40%, particularly in Hong Kong, Mexico, the UK, and the US.
Breaking down the data further, affluent investors increased their gold exposure to 11%, a rise of six percentage points from last year. Similarly, cryptocurrency holdings rose to 7%, up three percentage points from 2024.
Holdings in private equities and credit, investment-grade real estate, and commodities—other examples of alternative assets—also saw notable increases.
“Diversification is one of the most effective ways to weather uncertainty, and these findings highlight how affluent investors are building more diversified portfolios,” said Willem Sels, Global Chief Investment Officer of Private Bank and Premier Wealth at HSBC. “Notably, the increased allocation to alternative assets reflects how affluent investors are taking advantage of new access opportunities, especially to private markets.”
The report highlighted strong investor interest in gold. According to the survey, half of the respondents said they plan to own gold within the next 12 months—double the current ownership levels.
Among those, 41% are looking to buy physical bullion, while 28% are considering digital gold assets.
The yellow metal is also gaining traction among younger investors, with tokenized gold assets emerging as one of the most in-demand products this year.
The gold market has experienced strong investment demand in the first half of the year. Notably, inflows into gold-backed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have seen their largest increase since 2020, following four consecutive years of outflows.
Some analysts anticipate that investment demand will remain robust in the second half of the year, as the Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates by approximately 50 basis points.
In a separate report published on July 1, HSBC’s commodity analysts raised their average gold price forecast for 2025 to $3,215 per ounce, up from the previous estimate of $3,015. Meanwhile, gold prices are projected to average around $3,125 per ounce in 2026.
“We anticipate a wide and volatile trading range of $3,600–$3,100 per ounce for the rest of the year, with year-end prices of $3,175 for 2025 and $3,025 for 2026,” HSBC said in the note.
