by Craig Hemke
Sprott Money
With mines, mints, and refineries closed around the world due to coronavirus, the demand for physical gold has blown through the roof. This has led to some drastic measures by the CME Group, which in turn may have unwittingly sealed the fate of the COMEX and the entire fractional reserve and digital derivative pricing scheme.
This latest crisis began last Tuesday, when the spot market for gold appeared to seize up as the futures price roared ahead following the announcement of formalized QE8 by the U.S. Federal Reserve. The event has been chronicled by many analysts and experts, with even Reuters and Bloomberg joining in the reporting.