{"id":194419,"date":"2026-09-03T11:39:08","date_gmt":"2026-09-03T11:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/194419\/"},"modified":"2026-09-03T11:39:08","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T11:39:08","slug":"ray-dalio-says-sell-bonds-and-buy-gold-before-a-u-s-debt-crisis-hits-heres-what-that-means-for-canadian-rrsps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/194419\/","title":{"rendered":"Ray Dalio says sell bonds and buy gold before a U.S. debt crisis hits \u2014 here’s what that means for Canadian RRSPs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Ray<\/a> Ray Dalio <\/p>\n

Billionaire investor Ray Dalio just told<\/a> his millions of LinkedIn followers to sell bonds and buy gold and bitcoin instead. For Canadians who assume the bond portion of their RRSP or TFSA is the “safe” part of their portfolio, that’s an uncomfortable headline. <\/p>\n

Dalio, the founder of Bridgewater Associates, said the United States is spending far more than it collects, and warned that a US debt crisis could hit within three years, “give or take two.” His fix for investors: cut bond exposure, hold 10% to 15% of a portfolio in gold and add some bitcoin into a portfolio as well. <\/p>\n

This isn’t only a US story. When the world’s largest bond market wobbles, it pulls on interest rates, currencies and portfolios everywhere, including Canada. Here’s what’s actually happening, and what it means for your money. <\/p>\n

Don’t Miss What did Ray Dalio actually say? <\/p>\n

In the post, Dalio estimated the US government will collect about US$5.5 trillion in revenue this year against US$7.5 trillion in spending, a US$2-trillion shortfall, Bloomberg reported<\/a>. He pointed to Japan \u2014 the largest foreign holder of US Treasuries \u2014 selling some of its holdings, along with rising long-term bond yields, as signs that demand for U.S. debt is thinning. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s plan to increase government buybacks of long-term bonds, Dalio said, is a symptom of that same strain. <\/p>\n

Read more: 3 essential money moves to make once you’ve saved $50,000<\/a> <\/p>\n

Why does a US problem matter to Canadian bond holders? <\/p>\n

Most balanced portfolios, including target-date funds inside RRSPs, hold government bonds specifically because they’re supposed to retain their value when stock markets get rocky. But bond prices fall when yields rise, and Canadian bond yields tend to move with US yields because the two economies and their rate expectations are so closely linked. <\/p>\n

If US debt strain keeps pushing long-term yields higher, Canadian bond funds, including the ones inside a more conservative RRSP or RRIF, can lose value even without anything going wrong in Canada specifically. <\/p>\n

That matters most for retirees and near-retirees who lean on the bond side of a portfolio for stability and income, and who don’t have decades to wait out a downturn. <\/p>\n

Should Canadians follow Dalio and buy gold or bitcoin? <\/p>\n

Not automatically, and not all at once. Gold is one of the few alternative assets that’s actually accessible inside a registered account: physical bullion that’s at least 99.5% pure, such as Royal Canadian Mint Gold Maple Leaf coins, qualifies for RRSPs and TFSAs, as do gold ETFs and mining stocks. However, physical bullion has to sit with an approved custodian rather than at home, according to the Royal Canadian Mint<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Bitcoin is more complicated. Canadians can’t hold actual bitcoin inside an RRSP or TFSA; only Canadian-listed bitcoin ETFs, such as those offered by Purpose Investments<\/a>, qualify as registered-account investments. Crypto bought directly on an exchange doesn’t count, and every trade of it is a taxable event. <\/p>\n

Money.ca has previously noted<\/a> that gold’s main job in a portfolio is providing a hedge that moves independently of stocks, not necessarily beating them over the long run. On the other hand, bitcoin remains far more volatile than either stocks or gold. A small allocation may reduce overall portfolio risk for some investors. For others, especially those with limited time before they need to draw on their savings, adding a volatile asset can raise risk rather than lower it. <\/p>\n

What should Canadian investors do now? <\/p>\n

Check what’s actually inside your bond funds and see how sensitive they are to rising yields <\/p>\n

Don’t treat “bonds equal safe” as an automatic rule \u2014 ask what role they’re meant to play in your specific plan <\/p>\n

If considering gold, confirm purity and custodian requirements before assuming it’s RRSP or TFSA eligible <\/p>\n

If considering bitcoin, stick to Canadian-listed ETFs inside a registered account rather than direct crypto <\/p>\n

Talk to a licensed advisor before making a large, one-time shift based on a single forecast <\/p>\n

The bottom line <\/p>\n

Dalio’s three-year timeline could be right, or it could be early \u2014 he’s acknowledged that past debt-crisis warnings he’s made arrived sooner than the crisis itself did, per Bloomberg<\/a>. The more useful takeaway for Canadians isn’t the exact mix he’s recommending; it’s the reminder to check what’s actually backing the “safe” part of a portfolio, and to make sure it still fits an individual timeline, not just the latest headline risk. <\/p>\n

What To Read Next <\/p>\n

The most expensive financial mistakes are often the ones you don’t see coming. Join 19,000+ Canadians who get the money moves, risks and opportunities shaping their finances \u2014 delivered free each week. Subscribe now.<\/a> <\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Money.ca<\/a> under the title: Ray Dalio says sell bonds and buy gold before a U.S. debt crisis hits \u2014 here’s what that means for Canadian RRSPs<\/a> <\/p>\n

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ray Dalio Billionaire investor Ray Dalio just told his millions of LinkedIn followers to sell bonds and buy…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":194420,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[17,351,817,61014,61015,35927,734,61013,60367],"class_list":["post-194419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-canada","tag-canadian","tag-canadians","tag-dalio","tag-ray-dalio","tag-rrsp","tag-us","tag-us-treasuries","tag-us-treasury"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194419"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194419\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/194420"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}