The Dark Knight of Silver: Meet the Billionaire Betting $1B on Monetary Collapse
Who is David Bateman—and why is he hoarding 12 million ounces of silver as the 300 trillion-dollar debt bomb ticks?
“Some men just want to watch the world burn. Others—buy silver.”
In a financial world brimming with smoke and mirrors, a new player has emerged from the shadows—and he’s making waves, or rather, tsunamis, in the precious metals market.
Meet David Bateman. Not Bruce Wayne, but close. He’s the billionaire tech founder (of Entrata), and now, apparently, the newest self-styled guardian of sound money. And if his recent moves are any indication, he’s not waiting for the collapse—he’s positioning for it.
In a tweet that feels more like a financial manifesto, Bateman casually revealed that over the past six months, he has invested close to $1 billion in precious metals, including the purchase of 12.69 million ounces of silver—roughly 1.5% of the world’s annual supply.
That’s not a buy. That’s a declaration of war against the fiat system.
Bateman’s tweet dropped at the perfect moment—right in sync with Silver Squeeze 2.0 on March 31st, 2025. As expected, the internet exploded with memes and hype.
Let’s unpack his reasoning—and why it’s sending tremors through both Wall Street and the underground vaults of London and Zurich.
The Tweet That Roared
“Here are the reasons I invested close to a billion dollars in precious metals over the past six months—including the purchase of 1.5% of the annual global silver supply (12.69 million ounces) :
The global monetary system is about to collapse (The Great Reset, or Basel Endgame).
The biggest credit bubble in history will soon pop ($300T).
There is no way the US can refinance its $28T in maturing treasuries in the next 4 years without an obscene amount of printing.
Trump tariffs are hastening the collapse, and it’s by design.
Gold and silver are the only meaningful life raft. Physical possession is everything.
The whole world right now is a sophisticated game of musical chairs; the chairs are precious metals.
Crypto is a psyop. Those who purchase will have no chair when the music stops.
Real estate, crypto, stocks and bonds will all lose significantly compared to precious metals.
The banking system has been meticulously designed to seize your assets to buoy up a collapsing banking sector (see The Great Taking). You have ZERO counter party risk with precious metals.
I’m up 20% already, on most of my purchases. This is not a drill. Your grandkids someday will either muse or lament this financial decision you’re now faced with. Don’t fail them. Not financial advice. For educational purposes only.”
Bateman isn’t mincing words. He’s laying out a thesis that many gold and silver bugs have whispered for years: the system is rigged, it’s failing, and the exit paths are narrowing. But this isn’t Peter Schiff, or a fevered Reddit thread. This is a billionaire putting skin in the game—serious skin.
Welcome to the Endgame
The so-called “Basel Endgame” has been flying under the radar. As Basel III regulations increasingly punish unallocated (paper) precious metals exposure, they nudge the market toward physical delivery.
Simple Translation: banks and institutions must prove they actually hold the metal backing their contracts. While silver doesn’t enjoy Tier 1 status like gold, its Tier 3 classification is still stirring up added volatility in the market.
Who benefits in a world where paper silver evaporates, and physical becomes king?
Guys like Bateman, who already hold the metal.
He’s betting that in a game of financial musical chairs, the chairs are physical gold and silver—and that most people are still dancing.
What Happens When a Whale Buys Silver?
Let’s be clear: 12.69 million ounces isn’t just a flex. It’s a strategic offensive.
Global silver mine production hovers around 850 million ounces annually. A single actor absorbing 1.5% of supply stresses a market already strained by industrial demand (solar panels, EVs) and retail investor frenzy.
The Silver Squeeze isn’t a meme-stock crowd. This is coordinated capital reallocation in anticipation of systemic failure.
When silver breaks free from years of price suppression and begins reflecting its true monetary value, the upside isn’t 20%—it’s multiples.
(Sidebar: Silver’s dual role as an industrial metal and monetary asset makes it uniquely volatile. Basel III could squeeze paper markets, triggering a scramble for physical.)
The Great Taking, the Great Reset… and the Great Escape?
Bateman name-drops “The Great Taking”—a controversial theory by David Webb alleging that banks can legally seize customer assets during crises through force majeure. Whether you buy it or not, the core message resonates: if you don’t hold it, you don’t own it.
This isn’t tinfoil-hat paranoia. It’s a cold truth in a world drowning in $300 trillion of debt and derivatives.
Gold and silver? They’re the silent heroes watching over Gotham City. No CEO scandals. No liquidity traps. No algorithmic rug pulls. No halted trading. Simply, tangible wealth held securely within your own grasp.
A War on All Fronts
Bateman doesn’t stop at monetary collapse. His tweet scorches crypto (“a psyop”), real estate, stocks, and bonds—even implying Trump-era tariffs were a geopolitical chess move.
The takeaway? In his eyes, everything is burning, and the only asset not built on debt or trust is metal in hand.
“I’m Already Up 20%”
That line stings for silver holders who’ve waited decades for liftoff. But it also signals something darker for the global economy: the precious metals bull market has arrived.
Bateman has entered the chat. And he’s not alone.
This could mirror Paul Tudor Jones buying Bitcoin in 2020—except silver is older, rarer, and simmering with 2,000 years of legitimate monetary history.
Final Thoughts from the Rabbit Hole
Bateman’s bet isn’t just about silver. It’s about timing the collapse of trust in the financial system. And it’s a stark reminder: true wealth preservation is about what you don’t own—leverage, counterparties, fairy tales.
If you know anymore billionaire whales (or minnows) be sure to share this article with them and let them know that the big fish has entered the pond.
Stay vigilant,
-Tyler
We have no problem with any intelligent soul that buys silver** Why should ..in this 2025 scenario...*Americans* subsidize isreali* Jewish* empire building at the expense of everything else...."...?...Any fool who opts to subsidize that can sit down and write a personal check ...*..For millenia gold silver platinum palladium ..weapons tools books clothing commodities...heterosexual fertility ..community safety.... Loyalty to. Trad.family...structures....health .decent spirituality mattered...in less than 100 years all that for *Americans*.... has been thrown to the 4 winds**...Who opted for that? Who voted for that? .Controligarch ethnic Bankster Fraudster are monopolist cyborgs who possess precious metals and the above listed assets while playing financialization games to steal personal and national sovereignty.......**Hang Them*. Eviscerate all big pig big (... ..). Government cyborg bait and switch obstructionism...when politicians .. provably lie....Hang them**. Controligarch scum and big super surveillance super police state government profiteer on mass crime waves and pre-planned chaos...REARM NOW. Don't be stupid*
I knew this day would come. Been sitting on my investment since the later 90s.
I managed to talk my mini supermarket owner into bartering silver or gold if required. He is Asian so understands the value over fiat currency.