Adam Taggart | Thoughtful Money, Released on 9/2/25

In my opinion, the easiest macro trend to forecast is that our fiat currencies will continue to lose purchasing power in the years ahead, likely at an accelerating rate. Today’s guest not only agrees, but rings that same bell even more loudly than I do. For an update on his outlook on inflation, asset prices, the economy, the dollar, and what to expect next in this current Fourth Turning, we’re fortunate to welcome back to the program investor and sound money advocate Lawrence Lepard, author of the book: The Big Print, What Happened To America and How Sound Money Will Fix It.

0:00 – Discussing recent interviews with Lacy Hunt (deflation) and Steve Hanke (disinflation)
2:53 – Lepard’s disagreement with Hanke’s disinflation view and CPI accuracy
6:39 – Disagreeing with Hunt’s view on fiscal balance, citing tariff revenue estimates
7:51 – Agreeing with Hunt’s Kindleberger spiral and deflationary tariff risks
11:18 – Kindleberger spiral’s impact on liquidity, markets, and dollar strength
13:44 – Fiscal emergency, rising interest expenses, and bond market risks
16:01 – Confidence in fiat currency purchasing power decline
24:02 – Inflation vs. deflation debate, tariffs’ deflationary potential
28:51 – Stablecoins
35:26 – Deflationary scenario: stock market crash, bonds catching a bid
38:17 – Fed leadership changes (Powell’s term ends May 2026), dovish shift
42:56 – Grading Trump’s economic policies: B-minus, well-intentioned but ham-fisted
47:16 – Gold, silver, and Bitcoin as reserve assets, not just currencies
50:32 – Gold & Bitcoin price targets
53:17 – Bitcoin’s network effect and first-mover advantage
1:02:58 – Lepard’s strategy: stacking Bitcoin, holding gold/silver, buying miners
1:04:48 – Advice for new Bitcoin investors: allocate 10% from gold/silver
1:07:06 – Bitcoin as a lifeboat from sinking fiat, buy despite high prices
1:11:06 – Chart analysis: Bitcoin vs. gold, gold leads, Bitcoin follows stronger
1:14:28 – Rising electricity prices, AI-driven demand, and energy policy
1:21:37 – Fourth turning: 2008–2038, currency event looming in 3 years
1:24:19 – Hyperinflation risks, Gresham’s law, and historical currency failures
1:27:43 – General market outlook: bearish on stocks, bullish on miners
1:32:59 – How to learn about Lepard’s fund
1:34:59 – Where to buy The Big Print: Amazon, all formats
1:39:07 – Thoughtful Money Fall Conference (Oct 18th), Lyn Alden on Bitcoin

Lawrence W. Lepard founded Equity Management Associates. Currently, he is Managing Partner at Equity Management Associates LLC and Limited Partner at Johns Creek Partners LLC. He is also on the board of Amarillo Gold Corp. and Rise Gold Corp. In his past career he occupied the position of Principal at The Cue Ball Group LLC, Partner at Summit Partners LP, Managing General Partner at Geocapital Partners LLC, Investment Associate at Continental Illinois Venture Corp., Financial Analyst at Smith Barney Harris Upham & Co., Inc. and Financial Analyst of Citigroup Global Markets, Inc. (Broker). Mr. Lepard received an undergraduate degree from Colgate University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. His latest book is The Big Print: What Happened To America And How Sound Money Will Fix It.

Adam Taggart is the Founder of  Thoughtful Money. He is also Co-Founder and former President of Peak Prosperity. Adam is an experienced Silicon Valley internet executive and Stanford MBA. Prior to partnering with Chris Martenson (Adam was General Manager of our earlier site, ChrisMartenson.com), he was a Vice President at Yahoo!, a company he served for nine years. Before that, he did the ‘startup thing’ (mySimon.com, sold to CNET in 2001). As a fresh-faced graduate from Brown University in the early 1990s, Adam got a first-hand look at all that was broken with Wall Street as an investment banking analyst for Merrill Lynch. Most importantly, he’s a devoted husband and dad.

  bitcoin, dollar collapse, gold, inflation, Lawrence Lepard, money, money printing, silver