Why I Bridge Old Money and New Money

Five years ago, I helped found The Ohio Mint. We did things the old school way – physically minting metal, one piece at a time.

Today, I run Gold Silver Crypto in Highland, Utah, where people can buy physical gold and silver or tokenized versions through STBL.

Most people think you have to pick a side. I learned something different.

The Problem With Perfect Solutions

I believe in gold and silver. I buy them myself.

But owning physical metal creates real headaches. You need insurance, storage, and security.

Keep it at home, in a bank deposit box, or a third-party vault. In any scenario, you can’t walk into Smith’s or Walmart and spend it.

That’s where STBL comes in. You own tokenized metal backed by real gold and silver, but you can sell it easily or spend it with a VISA card.

Some people say if the gold isn’t in their pocket, they don’t own it. I help them too.

It’s pretty simple. I help people get what they want.

The Grocery Store Test

Everyone talks about precious metals as inflation hedges. Let me explain it differently.

Take $1000 in cash, USDT, or USDC. Hold it for a year. Your bank or Coinbase account still shows $1000. You haven’t “lost” any money.

But you’ve lost purchasing power. That $1000 buys a little less at the grocery store this year than last year.

Your gold? It could have appreciated 27% in 2024 and about as much in 2025. Silver is delivering a great return this year as well.

The grocery store test beats abstract economic theory every time. And for those that want to spend their metal, that STBL VISA solution above makes it possible.

Three Types of People

Running Gold Silver Crypto has taught me something interesting. Precious metals investors fall into three buckets.

First bucket: Physical-only buyers. They want metal they can hold. They may never buy STBL, and that’s fine. I have customers who buy silver from me regularly. They don’t like cash in banks. They’re not interested in tokenized versions.

Second bucket: The curious middle. They understand the concept but aren’t ready to buy. They like the idea of tokenized metal but need more education. Maybe they don’t believe the dollar is going away but use credit cards 95% of the time anyway.

Third bucket: The ready adopters. They hear about STBL and it makes immediate sense. They open an account.

I don’t try to convert skeptics. In fact, the people who don’t want either physical or tokenized metal usually don’t call me.

Why Highland, Utah

I chose Highland because it’s a few miles from my house, my neighbors, my community.

I’d been selling precious metals in the area for years. Opening a physical location made meetings easy and private. I also use the space for podcasting to get the word out about precious metals.

The majority of people who call want physical metal. Then there are the curious few interested in crypto. That opens doors.

Almost everyone I talk to likes the tokenized idea. Maybe I’m talking to the right people.

The Bigger Picture

Central banks aren’t confused about this choice. They purchased 1,045 tonnes of gold in 2024 alone, marking the third consecutive year above 1,000 tonnes. And 2025 has seen even more aggressive buying.

The tokenized gold market is now worth over $2 billion, with trading volume exceeding 23 million per day.

Institutions and individuals are figuring out the same thing I learned at The Ohio Mint. Physical and digital don’t have to compete.

Some people call gold and silver “dead money.” They won’t buy physical metal or STBL. But they might buy mining stocks or ETFs for “gold exposure”.

That’s their choice.

Building Bridges

My journey from Ohio Mint to STBL to Gold Silver Crypto taught me something simple. People want different solutions for the same problem.

The problem is preserving purchasing power while fiat currencies lose value.

The solutions range from physical metal in your safe to tokenized metal on your phone to ETFs in your portfolio.

I don’t judge which path someone chooses. I just try to serve the people who understand the problem and want a solution that works for them.

Whether that’s a silver coin they can hold or a digital token they can spend, the goal stays the same. Protect what you’ve earned from getting smaller every time you go to the grocery store.