A Chinese billionaire trader known for profiting from gold’s multi-year rally has turned sharply bearish on silver, building a short position now worth nearly US$300 million as prices slide.
Bian Ximing, who earned billions riding gold’s multi-year rally and later turned aggressively bullish on copper, is now positioned for a sharp reversal in silver—a bet that is already paying off as prices retreat from record highs.
According to exchange data analyzed by Bloomberg and people familiar with his positions, Bian has assembled the Shanghai Futures Exchange’s largest known net short position in silver, held through Zhongcai Futures Co.
The position, composed of roughly 30,000 contracts, or about 450 metric tons, has swung sharply into profit following silver’s more than 16 percent drop since late January.
The contrast with Bian’s copper strategy just a year ago could hardly be sharper.
In 2024, Bian emerged as China’s most prominent copper bull, building the largest net long position on the Shanghai Futures Exchange at a time when many traders were retreating amid trade tensions and growth concerns.
His thesis then centered on copper’s central role in electrification, grid expansion and industrial upgrading. That trade was built patiently and scaled over months, with Bian accumulating long positions across multiple contracts.
By the time copper prices surged, the position had generated hundreds of millions of dollars in gains.
Silver, by contrast, appears to have triggered Bian’s skepticism. While silver often trades alongside gold, its recent surge was increasingly viewed by market participants as driven by speculative positioning rather than fundamental shifts in industrial demand.
Unlike copper, where supply bottlenecks and electrification narratives were front and center, silver’s rally accelerated rapidly by drawing in leveraged traders and momentum funds.
Exchange data show that Bian began building silver shorts in the final week of January, as prices pushed into record territory in Shanghai. His exposure expanded quickly from about 18,000 contracts on January 28 to roughly 28,000 two days later, even as prices continued climbing.
The timing was costly at first, as volatility forced partial liquidations and earlier losses trimmed gains from prior silver longs.
However, Bian’s patience was rewarded when silver broke sharply lower.The short is now estimated to be worth roughly 2 billion yuan (US$288 million) in paper gains. After accounting for earlier losses, Bian’s net profit is estimated at around 1 billion yuan based on recent prices.
Whether the current selloff proves lasting remains an open question. Bian, who resides largely in Gibraltar and rarely speaks publicly, did not respond to requests for comment. Zhongcai Futures also declined to comment.
Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.