How Margin Hikes Increase Gold and Silver Volatility

Margin hikes can dramatically increase gold and silver volatility — not because fundamentals change, but because leveraged traders are forced to unwind positions. When exchanges like the CME raise margin requirements, cascading liquidations can accelerate corrections and intensify price swings. Understanding how leverage works in futures markets — and how it differs from owning physical metal — is essential for navigating today’s precious metals market.

What Are Margin Requirements? Why CME’s Hike Triggered a Silver Crash

CME’s margin requirements silver hike played a central role in the dramatic collapse from $120 to the $70s in early 2026. After a historic rally fueled by leverage and speculation, the exchange raised margins from 15% to 18%, forcing traders to post more capital or liquidate positions. The result: cascading selloffs, amplified volatility, and a textbook example of how leverage can accelerate both gains and losses in precious metals markets.

Global Silver Shortage: Why the Physical Price Is Breaking Away From Paper

Few times in history has the silver market looked like this.  In the latest episode of The GoldSilver Show, Mike Maloney and Alan Hibbard unpack an extraordinary squeeze that’s pushing the physical and paper markets in completely different directions — and it’s happening fast.  Lease Rates Explode: A Market Under Stress  Silver lease rates — the cost of borrowing silver for short trades — have rocketed to over 33%, a level almost never seen.  Under normal conditions, those rates hover near zero. A 33% spike signals something deeper: a market starved of liquidity.  For short sellers, this is a nightmare. […]

Silver Squeeze 2025: The 45-Year Chart Pointing to Triple-Digit Prices

Mike Maloney believes we’re witnessing the most significant turning point in the silver market’s history — and his latest video, Understand the Silver Squeeze, reveals why.  From London to Tokyo, silver lease rates are skyrocketing — now higher than platinum’s — as bullion banks struggle to find metal to lend. “Nobody’s got silver,” one market insider told Mike. “Lease rates are 20 to 30 percent if you’re lucky enough to find a lender.”  That’s not normal. It’s a sign of deep, systemic stress. For the first time in decades, even the largest players are admitting that there’s “no free-floating silver […]

Silver Shortage Explained: Scarcity, Premiums, and What’s Next

If you’ve been waiting to stack more silver, now might be your last chance for a while. The global silver squeeze isn’t coming. It’s here.  In his latest video, Mike Maloney delivers a blunt warning: physical silver is vanishing worldwide, premiums are surging, and the disconnect between paper and physical markets is hitting a breaking point. From mints in Canada to shops in Vietnam, supply is drying up fast.  A Global Supply Shock in Real Time  Australia, Africa, Canada, Vietnam, the U.K., and the U.S. are all showing the same signs: empty shelves, delayed shipments, and backorders stretching out weeks. […]