I've always been a bit skeptical of those in the dollar collapse crowd who are obsessed with precious metals manipulation. This is because the word manipulation can mean different things. Anytime someone makes a big trade in a small market, it will move the market which can be considered manipulation. The main issue is whether the trade was done nefariously or not.
The recent news of Deutsche Bank agreeing to pay a 38 million dollar fine to the US government for manipulating the silver price makes a fairly strong case for what the manipulation crowd has been saying for years though. Of course, 38 million is a drop in the bucket for a bank that has over 1.5 trillion in total assets, but the fact that they agreed to pay is damning evidence for sure.
Where I'm still skeptical of manipulation claims is that EVERY time gold or silver drops more than a few books, people online immediately cry out "Jamie Dimon and crew smashed us down again!" Yes, the central banks and banking elite of the world don't want to see precious metals skyrocket, but if they have total control over the price(as some would make it seem) why would they let the price rise ever? The bull market in gold and silver that started in 2000-2001 would have never occurred if the manipulators were "in control." Still, it will be interesting to see how DB continues to unravel and if their failure leads to a contagion effect.
Source:
http://www.cnbc.com/2016/10/18/deutsche-bank-to-pay-38-million-in-us-silver-price-fixing-case.html
