The Unverifiable Gold Bar
Economist Peter Schiff was unable to verify the authenticity of a gold bar during a much-anticipated debate with Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ).
“If I give you Bitcoin right now, we can verify it in several ways that you received it,” CZ told Schiff while on stage at the Binance Blockchain Week during a debate on Bitcoin Vs Tokenized Gold. “It settles instantly and transparently on-chain.”
CZ then handed Schiff a gold bar.
“It says Kyrgyzstan, 1,000 grams, fine gold, 999.9, and a serial number,” CZ said, before asking Schiff if it’s real gold.
“I don’t know,” Schiff replied.
Schiff's Defense of Tokenized Gold
Schiff has long publicly criticized Bitcoin and also digital asset treasury (DAT) companies such as Michael Saylor’s Strategy. He highlighted the benefits that tokenized gold has over Bitcoin.
“Tokenized gold improves all the monetary properties of gold while it remains a store of value,” he said. “The token is simply the evidence that you own the gold in the vault.”
He acknowledged that there is logistical weakness associated with physical gold, especially when it comes to transporting a lot of the commodity. However, he believes that tokenization and other technology solve this issue while still preserving the commodity’s intrinsic qualities.
“For money purposes, tokenized gold is better than physical gold,” he said. “Ownership can change hands while the gold never leaves the vault.”
The economist then went on to remind the audience that gold’s value is supported by the commodity’s utility, rarity, and historical trust.
“What gives gold value is not that you can touch it, but that it has real utility as a metal,” he said. “There are industries that need gold and things only gold can do.”
CZ's Counterarguments for Bitcoin
CZ countered Schiff’s argument by saying that Bitcoin is the currency of the internet and benefits from its high levels of digitalization.
With regards to tokenized gold, CZ reiterated his argument that even if the commodity is represented on-chain, investors still have to trust that the issuer who tokenized the gold actually holds the bullion they claim they do.
CZ also dismissed the notion that money needs to be backed by physical assets to be credible, and compared Bitcoin’s value to that of tech platforms.
He said that the “internet is virtual.”
“There is nothing physical about Google or X, but they clearly have value,” he said. “Many virtual things have value; that value is not tied to physical properties.”
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“Someone has been enriched at the expense of other people.”
The Complexity of Verifying Gold
There are currently several industry-wide accepted methods for scientifically verifying gold.
Those methods include X-Ray Fluorescent Spectroscopy, Ultrasound, and Eddy Current testing. But these processes are relatively time consuming, complex, and require experts.
What’s more, X-Ray Fluorescent Spectroscopy is only effective in determining gold content in metals up to 10 microns in thickness. The other methods have similar issues, which means that they are not “definitive” testing methods, according to the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA).
The only way to attain 100% certainty of the precious metal contents is to melt down the gold.