Have you been following the news? The central bank has been buying gold again, and hasn't stopped for seven months. In May, it quietly hoarded nearly 1.86 tons, bringing the total to almost 2300 tons now. The country's actions are quite clear: they feel the global economy is a bit unstable, especially with the many issues coming from the U.S. The dollar is fluctuating, so holding more gold gives them peace of mind. This stuff has been hard currency for thousands of years and can help in critical moments.

Watching the central bank buy gold, I can't help but think: this move is stable, but if they were a bit bolder and allocated part of the money for buying gold to hoard some 'big cakes', the profits would be completely different! To be fair, gold has indeed risen this year, about 17%, which isn't bad. But if you look at the 'big cake,' it has skyrocketed nearly 70% this year! This gap is not insignificant. For example, if the money used by the central bank in May to increase its gold holdings had been thrown into Bitcoin instead, given this year's momentum, the paper gains could multiply several times. Moreover, the liquidity of the 'big cake' is not inferior to that of gold; it can be converted quickly when needed.

The 'big cake' is highly volatile, and those with weak hearts can't afford to play with it. The national reserve's primary task is definitely safety first; having this amount of gold is fine, but the profit efficiency is poor! Gold is a shield for risk aversion, steady and reliable; the 'big cake' is more like a spear for offense, with a strong push.

Now, the world is changing rapidly. Just thinking about defense might not be enough; we also need to consider how to more efficiently make money work for us. The central bank's continued gold purchases are fine, this line of thinking is correct. However, if we think privately, if we really believe in the future trend of digital assets, then the potential of the 'big cake' indeed seems more 'appealing' than the shiny metal. After all, sometimes trends can bring real profits more than risk aversion.