How to Invest in Gold in 2026? Exploring the New Trend of Precious Metal Digitization Led by Gate

In 2026, as the global economic landscape accelerates its reconfiguration and the monetary order faces reshaping, gold—an anchor of value spanning thousands of years—is ushering in a digital revolution driven by blockchain technology. The deep integration of traditional gold markets with crypto finance has given rise to a new trend of precious metals tokenization, exemplified by tokenized gold, offering investors unprecedented flexibility and efficiency.

2025-2026: Gold Price Review and Market Drivers

Entering 2026, the gold market continues the strong momentum since 2025. After reaching a historic high in London spot gold prices in 2025, prices remained high in early 2026, recently hovering above $4,900 per ounce.

Several mainstream financial institutions are optimistic about gold price trends in 2026. The Goldman Sachs research team, in its latest report from January 2026, raised its December 2026 gold price forecast to $5,400/oz. The core driving forces behind this are multi-dimensional. Persistent monetary easing policies and expansionary fiscal policies by major global central banks have led to declining real interest rates and expanding global debt levels, significantly reducing the opportunity cost of holding gold.

Meanwhile, amid expectations of unprecedented global upheaval, uncertainties in the political and economic landscape continue to boost market demand for safe-haven assets and allocation needs. Capital flows into gold ETFs and other instruments have provided solid support for gold prices.

Breaking Boundaries: How Crypto Contracts Are Reshaping the Traditional Gold Market

Long-term traditional gold investment faces pain points such as high barriers to entry, low liquidity, and cumbersome storage and delivery. The World Gold Council (WGC) pointed out in its white paper that both allocated and unallocated gold have serious limitations when used as financial collateral.

Blockchain technology and tokenization solutions offer innovative ways to address these issues. By converting physical gold ownership into blockchain-based digital tokens, investors can trade tiny fractions of gold (as low as one-millionth of an ounce) 24/7, completely breaking through the temporal, spatial, and capital barriers of traditional markets. This transformation is not just a technological upgrade but a strategic response of traditional finance to the crypto market. It unlocks new use cases for gold in DeFi (Decentralized Finance), such as collateral for loans or liquidity provision, endowing this ancient asset with new income-generating attributes.

Practice: Gate’s Frontline in Precious Metals Tokenization

As a vital bridge connecting traditional finance and the crypto world, Gate has launched several mainstream precious metals USDT perpetual contracts, providing investors with efficient and flexible digital gold trading channels.

Taking data from January 23, 2026, as an example, these contracts demonstrate active market performance:

• XAUTUSDT (Tether Gold): Latest quote $4,952.9, with a 24-hour trading volume of up to $187 million, reflecting strong demand for high-liquidity digital gold.
• PAXGUSDT (Paxos Gold): Price $4,971.1, with the key advantage of being under strict regulation by the New York Department of Financial Services, offering clear legal frameworks and ownership protections for compliance-conscious investors.
• XAUUSDT (Gold Index) and XAGUSDT (Silver): Contract prices at $4,941.45 and $96.88 respectively, providing direct tools for investors to track spot precious metal price trends.

These crypto contract products are ushering precious metals investment into a new era of high accessibility, high liquidity, and high transparency.

Balance: Risk Management Ideas for Precious Metals Crypto Investment

Opportunities always come with risks. Engaging in precious metals tokenized investment requires establishing a clear risk management framework. The primary risk remains price volatility. Although gold has safe-haven attributes, its price—especially leveraged contract prices—can fluctuate sharply due to macroeconomic factors, monetary policies, and market sentiment.

Second, attention should be paid to counterparty risk and credit risk of different products. For example, the value of XAUT heavily depends on the credit and solvency of issuer Tether. PAXG, on the other hand, attempts to mitigate such risks through trust structures and strong regulation.

Additionally, regulatory policy risks and technical security risks (such as smart contract vulnerabilities and private key loss) should not be overlooked. Investors must manage positions carefully, set stop-loss orders, and diversify holdings (e.g., combining physical gold, gold ETFs, and various tokenized products) to build resilient portfolios, avoiding investments beyond their risk tolerance.

Outlook: 2026, the Year of Deepening Integration of Gold and Crypto

Looking ahead to 2026, the macro favorable factors supporting gold—policy easing, safe-haven, and allocation demand—are expected to persist, suggesting that the gold bull market may not have ended. Meanwhile, the trend of precious metals tokenization and digitization will further deepen. From the World Gold Council’s advocacy of “wholesale digital gold” (PGI) ecosystem to the mature products like XAUT and PAXG in the market, traditional gold is opening a second battlefield in the digital world. This fusion not only revitalizes gold itself but also provides a stability anchor for the entire crypto asset class. In the highly volatile cryptocurrency markets, tokenized gold is becoming a top choice for investors seeking asset preservation and on-chain flexibility.

The future is here. After a sharp rise, gold prices are consolidating, and the market cap of digital gold tokens has quietly surpassed tens of billions of dollars. Trading volumes of contracts like XAUT and PAXG on the Gate platform remain active, with 24/7 trading windows and units divisible down to micro-ounces, fundamentally reshaping the traditional narrative of gold investment. When ancient trust meets cutting-edge technology, a profound transformation in value storage and exchange is unfolding before our eyes.