Ideas
Gold is a structural core holding
Quartermain sees a structural flexure point for gold: global debt and unfunded liabilities are undermining confidence in Treasuries; central banks led by China and other official buyers, plus crypto/Tether balance sheets and individual investors, are reallocating toward hard assets; physical gold is debt-free and portable. He believes gold prices will remain strong, sees a path toward $5,000-$10,000 gold in his lifetime, and says he is 'all in' with physical gold, gold companies, and Dakota/Hemlo exposure. He also cites industrial demand in electronics, AI, and quantum computing.
Dakota Gold offers district-scale development leverage
Dakota Gold is his day job and he is its largest shareholder. He is reviving the Homestake district in South Dakota, particularly the Richmond Hill near-surface oxide project two miles from Coeur's operating Wharf mine. Richmond Hill benefits from 900 historic drill holes, over 300 new holes, private land, roads, power, permitting familiarity, and local mining talent. Reported resources are 2.6M oz measured/indicated and about 3.9M oz M&I&I; at $2,350 gold, the project shows about $1.6B NPV at a 5% discount rate, with low AISC around $1,050/oz and about $383M capex. Current gold prices imply much higher NPV, and he targets production around 2029.
Hemlo offers mill expansion and reserve upside
Hemlo is a historic high-grade gold mine that has operated for 40 years and produced over 20 million ounces. He helped assemble a group to buy it from Barrick for $900 million; as lead director, he sees the existing infrastructure as a major advantage. The Williams mill is currently running about 3,800 tons per day but was built for 8,000+ tons per day, so mill expansion is a clear milestone. Barrick's reserves used $1,700 gold, and higher gold prices should support resource/reserve expansion; extensive underground drilling and a strong young team position Hemlo as the foundation for a new mid-tier gold company.
Silver is illiquid and supply-inelastic
Silver is a smaller, less liquid market than gold and supply is inelastic because most silver is a byproduct of copper, gold, and lead-zinc mines rather than primary production. With rising investor interest and limited physical supply, silver can accelerate upward; he also notes a 50-year cup-and-handle technical setup and says he holds physical silver. He is not as explicitly all-in on silver as on gold but sees better volatility and further upside.
Gold miners lag metal prices
Precious metal mining equities are not reflecting current metal prices; the market still seems to price gold around $3,000-$3,200 while spot is much higher. Miners are generating large cash flows at these prices and can return cash via dividends and buybacks. Merger digestion has distracted the sector, but once combinations are absorbed, earnings and cash flows should rise, creating opportunity across producers and the broader gold mining space.
Development gold miners offer Lassonde re-rating
Within gold mining, development-stage companies that are not yet in production but could be in a year or two offer the potential for accelerated re-rating along the Lassonde curve. He advises participating from exploration through development and even some producers, because the market has not fully captured current metal prices and development names can move from reserve definition into production, capturing value for shareholders.
Gold mining earnings will surprise upward
Based on 25 years in the gold mining business, Trey argues the greatest advantage for precious metals investors is recognizing that most success comes from serial winners—management teams with proven expertise and past successes. Despite regulatory disclaimers, gold mining is a sector where past performance can be a healthy barometer of future success, so investors should favor companies led by proven management teams.
This Wealthion video, published January 20, 2026,
features Robert Quartermain, Trey Reik
discussing GLD, DC, Hemlo Mining, SILVER, GDX, Development-stage gold miners.
7 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.
Speakers:
Robert Quartermain,
Trey Reik
· Tickers:
GLD,
DC,
Hemlo Mining,
SILVER,
GDX,
Development-stage gold miners
