Palantir Technologies Hoards Physical Gold to Protect Against Shocks

Palantir Technologies may be known as a data mining company, but it is digging for more than just information. The company is hoarding gold bars in anticipation of another “black swan event,” according to a Bloomberg report. Palantir has doled out more than USD 50 million for gold and could be eyeing digital gold — bitcoin — too.

Palantir provides software to intelligence and defense institutions as well as to commercial entities. Now the company has also paved the way for its customers to pay for that software using the precious metal. They previously added support for bitcoin amid a push for “non-traditional currencies,” which according to COO Shyam Sankar cited by Bloomberg “reflects more of a world view.”

The report goes on to state that customers have yet to take Palantir up on its offer and pay for software with a store-of-value asset, such as gold or bitcoin just yet. Meanwhile, the company has been scooping up gold bars as a hedge against any disasters.

Some of the details were revealed in the company’s latest 10-Q filing with the U.S. SEC. In the document, Palantir documented how it invested in 100-ounce gold bars earlier this month. The company will store the physical bars at a “secure third-party facility located in the northeastern” U.S. and will have access to the precious metal as needed, as long as it provides adequate notice.

Short Term vs. Long Term

Shares of Palantir are down on the day, having fallen 2%. Year-to-date, the stock is basically flat. Palantir went public almost a year ago in a direct listing on the NYSE. Over the past 12 months, shares of Palantir have more than doubled.

Gold vs. Bitcoin

Gold and bitcoin are rival store-of-value assets, yet the price activity is far apart. Data analytics platform Skew pointed out that the one-year realized correlation between the two assets has flipped negative and is close to its lowest point since 2018.

Bitcoin-Gold 1Y Realized Correlation has turned negative and is approaching its 3Y lows. pic.twitter.com/own1CeRvlK

— skew (@skewdotcom) August 11, 2021

So far this year, the bitcoin price has advanced more than 50%. The gold price has been in the doldrums, falling by about 9% to below USD 1,800 per ounce. Bitcoin is touted for its scarcity and digital nature, which makes it easier to use as a currency of exchange vs. gold. The precious metal boasts a market cap of roughly USD 11 trillion vs. bitcoin’s USD 855 billion, though gold has been around for thousands of years.