As gold nears the $5000/ounce level, a sophisticated trader has bought a total value of $4.17M in tokenized gold. The increase in institutional participation in tokenized gold assets reflects the increased interest from institutions resulting from large price increases in the traditional gold markets. This transaction has been tracked by blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain.
Strategic Timing Captures Gold’s Historic Rally
A trader associated with wallet address 0x0a5e deposited $7 million in USDT in Bybit and exchanged the entire amount in XAUT tokens. The total amount of supply is 843 XAUT tokens or direct ownership of one troy ounce of physical gold in Swiss secured vaults. The move represents a direct bet on a strong rally in gold in 2026.
The timing seems to be no coincidence because gold rocketed towards the $5,000 per ounce level during times of geopolitical strife, worries about the independence of the U.S. Federal Reserve, and the unresolved trade conflicts. SPG4941 Customs gold was trading near $4,941 an ounce, up $2,171 year over year. $5,000 possible in the late 2026 time horizon. $6,000 up to longer term, as sustained investor and central bank demand for gold.
Bridging Traditional Finance and Blockchain
The preference of this trader for XAUT over traditional gold producers is indicative of a change in how sophisticated investors are seeking exposure to precious metals. Tokenized gold has come to represent an outstanding performer in the real-world asset sector in 2026, with total value locked jumping from around $1 billion to exceeding $4 billion.
XAUT has obvious benefits, such as fractional ownership, no storage or logistics costs and 24/7 trading of crypto across countries around the world. These features provide efficiency and flexibility to large scale investors.
The supporting infrastructure is more stable today than it was a year ago. Tether Gold is 100% backed by physical reserves, has an independent third-party audit/review and has on-chain verification of gold bar attributes/evidence of ownership in real time. Traditional investment holders have started to view tokenized Gold as a current alternative means of storing value.
Macro Catalysts To Drive Institutional Accumulation
Beyond whale activity, the macroeconomic situation in general has provided a good environment for gold accumulating across both traditional and tokenized markets. Rising resource nationalism as countries such as the US and China are trying to exert more influence over key resources, they are reinforcing the position of gold as a strategic hedge. At the same time, concerns about central bank independence are favoring investors of hard assets, which maintain their value in periods of policy uncertainty.
U.S. Federal Reserve policy outlooks are also positive for gold. While rates are expected to remain unchanged at the January 27-28 meeting, markets are looking forward for two cuts in the second half of 2026. Lower rates tend to favor non yielding assets such as gold.
Demand from central banks is also strong: J.P. Morgan expects some 755 tons of purchases in 2026. Combined with this accumulation of whales and positive expectations, all signal that the surge may still have capacity to continue, with some estimating that prices may go as high as $7,000.
Conclusion
The incredible acquisition of $4.17 million XAUT reflects more than one trader’s belief. It represents a significant shift in the way institutional capital gains access to precious metals. With gold trading around $5,000 an ounce and big financial institutions making projections of more gains to come, tokenized ones like XAUT are proving their value as efficient, transparent methods of capturing the upside of gold. As geopolitical uncertainty continues to exist, and monetary policy remains accommodative the conditions supporting both traditional and tokenized gold appear to be likely to continue for well into 2026 and beyond
Source: https://blockchainreporter.net/whale-trader-makes-4-17m-gold-bet-as-precious-metal-nears-historic-5000-milestone/
