Commodity-backed cryptocurrencies, primarily gold-backed tokens, have experienced a significant increase in issuance this week, reaching their highest minting volumes in at least five years. The surge followed gold futures trading above $3,500, prompting concerns due to U.S. tariffs on Switzerland affecting the international flow of physical gold. Despite gold spot and futures falling after an initial surge, gold-backed tokens continued to be minted. Tether Gold and Paxos Gold briefly surpassed $3,390 before retracting. Minting volumes reached $439 million this week, more than double the previous record set in 2021, according to RWA.xyz data. Switzerland, a major gold refiner, exported over $61 billion of gold to the U.S. in the past year, causing political tensions within the country’s gold sector.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Commodity-Backed Cryptocurrencies Hit 5-Year Minting Record Over Gold Trade Turmoil