Silver is staging a rally that has left global investors stunned. As we enter 2026, the spot price of silver in London has surged past $117 per ounce, repeatedly setting new highs in recent days.
At the same time, the iShares Silver Trust (SLV), an exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracking silver prices, saw its single-day trading volume soar to nearly $40 billion.
This figure not only rivals the daily turnover of one of the world’s largest ETFs—the S&P 500 ETF—but also far surpasses the single-day stock trading volumes of Nvidia ($23 billion) and Tesla ($22 billion).
01 Market Frenzy
The silver market is experiencing an unprecedented trading frenzy, with core data points that are nothing short of astonishing.
The iShares Silver Trust (SLV) ETF’s daily trading volume has skyrocketed from around $2 billion just a few months ago to nearly $40 billion recently.
This marks a nearly 20-fold increase in trading volume over a short period. By comparison, tech giants Nvidia and Tesla saw single-day stock trading volumes of $23 billion and $22 billion, respectively—both left far behind by the silver ETF.
Silver’s price action has been equally dramatic. In 2025, silver prices more than doubled, and as we moved into January 2026, the rally accelerated, with monthly gains approaching 60%.
If this momentum holds through the end of the month, it will mark the largest monthly increase since 1979.
02 Drivers Behind the Rally
What’s powering this "high-speed train" in the silver market? Analysis shows that this round of price action is now largely driven by pure speculation, rather than traditional economic fundamentals.
The collective rush of retail investors stands out as the defining feature of this wave. According to market research firm VandaTrack, on just one day—Monday, January 26—individual investors poured about $171 million in net new funds into the iShares Silver Trust.
This was the fund’s largest single-day inflow ever, nearly double the previous record set during the "silver short squeeze" in 2021.
Vanda analyst Ashwin Bhakre put it bluntly: "Silver has become the hottest new target for retail investors."
Their data further shows that silver’s "turnover momentum" (a measure of trading acceleration) has soared to 11.55 times the normal level, even surpassing Nvidia’s 7.54 times during the same period.
"In relative terms, the momentum chasing in silver now exceeds that of classic AI (stock) trades."
03 Global Resonance and Divergence
The silver frenzy isn’t confined to the US market—it’s a global capital phenomenon. In London, the world’s largest physical precious metals trading hub, the afternoon benchmark silver price briefly broke above $111 per ounce.
Meanwhile, on January 27, the Shanghai Gold Exchange set a new all-time high for silver, with a benchmark price of 28,346 yuan per kilogram. Since the end of 2025, domestic silver prices in China have risen 66.7% year-to-date.
Robust demand in China is a key factor supporting prices. On January 27, China’s benchmark silver price was nearly $17 per ounce higher than London’s, clearly reflecting strong internal demand.
Institutional analysts interpret this as follows: "Investors are driven by fear of missing out, using silver as a substitute for gold and as a macro-geopolitical hedge. Physical demand remains a critical driver."
04 Underlying Currents
Yet beneath the surface of this bullish fervor, significant "two-way betting" is underway.
On one hand, Vanda data shows that leveraged ETFs betting against silver—such as the ProShares UltraShort Silver (ZSL)—are also seeing unusually high inflows.
This indicates that many retail investors are using leverage to bet on an imminent collapse in silver prices. As analysts put it, investors are waging a "two-front war" on silver.
On the other hand, some seasoned market participants are voicing strong concerns about the current rally. Tom Sosnoff, founder of LossDog, described silver’s recent price action as "meme stock trading," characterized by massive volumes and extreme volatility.
He sharply noted, "Gold and silver, in some ways, are absolutely the ‘meme commodities’ of 2026. Silver’s price action is just too wild."
05 The Crypto Perspective
As the traditional commodities market heats up over silver, savvy investors are also considering what ripple effects this trend may have on the crypto world. In this space, Gate, as a leading global cryptocurrency exchange, provides users with a bridge to seize such market rotation opportunities.
For example, Gate’s platform token GT has also shown steady performance in recent markets.
As of January 28, 2026, GT’s latest price stood at $9.94, up 0.60% over the past 24 hours and 2.00% over the past 7 days.
Its 24-hour trading volume reached $3,113,763, with a market capitalization of approximately $1.13 billion. The GT/USDT trading pair remains one of the most active markets on Gate, offering ample liquidity for investors.
Additionally, Gate keeps users updated with timely market developments. For instance, cross-chain protocol Wormhole is expected to unlock 1.28 billion W tokens on April 3, 2026—about 28.39% of its current circulating supply. Events like this can impact market liquidity and are worth close attention from investors.
For those looking to capture both the precious metals trend and digital asset growth, platforms like Gate offer a convenient entry point, enabling one-stop management of a diversified asset portfolio.
Silver’s brilliance is now outshining even the hottest tech stocks. At its peak, the daily trading volume of silver ETFs topped $40 billion—nearly double Nvidia’s single-day turnover.
Traders in London are glued to screens as numbers leap, while the Shanghai Gold Exchange sets new pricing records. Even as analysts warn this is a "meme commodity" frenzy that could reverse if momentum fades, for now, silver is undeniably the brightest star on the global capital stage.
