New Day, New Record: Silver Overtakes Nvidia To Become Second-Largest Asset After Gold

In a year dominated by AI stocks and tech titans, an old-world asset has quietly staged a modern comeback. Silver has surged past Nvidia to become the world’s second-largest asset by market capitalisation, trailing only gold and leaving behind some of the most valuable public companies on the planet.

After prices of the white metal topped $84 an ounce, silver’s market capitalisation crossed $4.7 trillion, underscoring just how dramatic its rally has been. For context, this ranking includes all assets — public companies, precious metals, cryptocurrencies and ETFs.

By market value, the hierarchy now looks like this:

• Gold: $31.5 trillion

• Silver: $4.7 trillion

• Nvidia: 4.6 trillion

• Apple: 4 trillion

• Alphabet: 3.8 trillion

• Microsoft: 3.6 trillion

• Bitcoin: $1.8 trillion

Silver’s move into second place is striking not just because it overtook Nvidia — the poster child of the AI boom — but because it has done so while outpacing almost every other major asset class in 2025.

Year-to-date, silver has delivered gains of around 170%, more than double gold’s already-impressive 72% rise. While gold has benefited from central bank buying and safe-haven demand, silver has enjoyed an extra boost from its dual identity: part precious metal, part industrial workhorse.

That combination has proved explosive.

Silver is a critical input for electric vehicles, solar panels, electronics and AI data centres. As governments push energy transitions and data infrastructure expands rapidly, demand has remained robust — and largely non-negotiable.

Despite being a precious metal, the silver market is now facing its fifth consecutive year of supply deficits. Mining output has failed to keep pace with consumption, and above-ground inventories are near historic lows.

In addition to the shortage, lower interest rates have amplified the appeal of non-yielding assets. Following three rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve, investors are betting on further easing in 2026. A weaker dollar has added fuel to the rally.

Recent geopolitical flashpoints, including US actions in Venezuela and Nigeria, have also boosted haven demand. At the same time, a US Commerce Department probe into critical mineral imports has raised the prospect of tariffs or trade curbs on silver — adding another layer of uncertainty to already tight supply chains.

One reason silver has moved so violently is market structure. Unlike gold, which benefits from deep liquidity and vast lending pools in London — estimated at around $700 billion — silver has no comparable buffer.

That fragility was exposed during a historic supply squeeze in October. While London vaults have since seen inflows, shortages have emerged elsewhere. In China, silver inventories linked to the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell last month to their lowest levels since 2015.

Complicating matters further, much of the world’s readily available silver is sitting in New York, as traders wait for clarity on US trade policy. The result is a global game of musical chairs — with too little metal and too many buyers.

After surging to record highs, silver has shown signs of fatigue. Prices fell as much as 5% on Monday, as traders booked profits following five straight days of gains.

Technical indicators suggest caution. Silver’s 14-day relative strength index climbed close to 80, well above the 70 threshold typically seen as overbought. In other words, the rally may have run too far, too fast — at least in the short term.

Whether silver consolidates or pushes higher from here, its rise past Nvidia is symbolic. It reflects a market increasingly shaped by scarcity, geopolitics and real-world utility, not just earnings growth and technological promise.

For now, silver isn’t just shining — it’s rewriting the global asset leaderboard.