The Great 2025 Gold Rush: Will momentum continue in 26?
Gold was undoubtedly one of the standout commodity stories of 2025.
The yellow metal peaked to an all-time high of over $4,500 per troy ounce on 26th December, a height which has since been surpassed in January 2026. The demand for gold has seen investors seeking a safe haven during yet more global political risk, largely driven by the US intervention into Venezuela, the ongoing impact of the US tariffs and sabre rattling with Greenland, with heightened tensions in the Middle East with Iran and the ongoing challenge of the Gaza situation. Meanwhile the Russia/Ukrainian is war is on the brink of entering into its fifth year.
The combination of destabilising global events with the ongoing economic impact of inflation, deglobalisation and a weak US dollar policy has seen unprecedented investment flows from central banks - particularly China – seeking a hard asset hedge against these economic headwinds. And physical gold has been the main recipient of this interest.
Fast forward to 12 January 2026, spot gold is threatening the US$4,600 level, with many analysts forecasting the potential to reach US$5,000 per ounce by the end of 2026, levels only dreamed of by the industry only a year or so ago. The price of silver, a precious yet also industrial metal, is today trading at over $84 per ounce, almost doubling since November 2025.
M&A surge follows price rally
This unprecedented surge in precious metals prices fuelled significant M&A activity throughout 2025, keeping the Burson Buchanan mining team exceptionally busy.
In October, our long-standing client ASX-listed Predictive Discovery (PDI) announced a merger with TSX-listed Robex Resources, creating a new West African gold mining champion producer with a combined valuation of c. US$2.8 billion. The merger allows PDI to de-risk development of its flagship Bankan Gold Project in Guinea, leveraging Robex's revenue-generating Nampala Gold Mine in Mali and the soon-to-be-commissioned Kiniero Project in Guinea. The combined entity will have significant relevance to global investors as a pure gold mining company, with a dual listing on Australia’s ASX and Canada’s TSX-V stock exchanges. Following the approval by Robex’s shareholders on 30 December, the transaction is expected to complete in Q1 2026 following the approval by the newly democratically elected Guinean government.
Toronto-listed DPM Metals acquired our client, dual-listed (LSE/ASX) Adriatic Metals, for US$1.3 billion—a strategically timed transaction that closed in September, and saw Adriatic shareholders crystalise a four-times increase in its share price since Burson Buchanan began advising the company in late 2021. The acquisition gives DPM ownership of the high-grade Vareš Silver Operation in Bosnia & Herzegovina, a producing silver-lead-zinc-gold underground mine. With silver and gold prices surging since the deal was first announced in June, this proved highly successful for DPM, which now benefits from expanded operations in the Balkans and can leverage its balance sheet to develop Vareš into Europe's newest sustainable mining operation.
Global M&A onward March
Gold dominated mining M&A globally in 2025, with notable transactions including:
- Gold Fields' A$3.9 billion acquisition of Gold Road Resources
- Northern Star's ~A$6 billion acquisition of De Grey Mining
- Coeur Mining's acquisition of New Gold for approximately US$700 million, creating a new North American senior metals producer.
Outlook for 2026
Market sentiment remains overwhelmingly bullish on gold prices for 2026 with hardly a bear in sight. Morgan Stanley has revised its forecast twice, now predicting gold will reach $4,800/oz by Q4 2026, playing catch up with Goldman Sachs' target of $5,055/oz by year end.
Additionally, central banks show no signs of slowing their gold accumulation, physical gold-backed ETF inflows hitting a record $26 billion in Q3 2025 and cashed up gold miners are well-positioned for further consolidation.
With these tailwinds, coupled with the rapid shifting of geopolitical tectonic plates, 2026 is shaping up to be another dynamic year for precious metals and mining M&A activity. As one of the most active consultancies within the mining industry’s consolidation, Burson Buchanan looks forward to yet another year of significant activity.
Contact Burson Buchanan's mining team to discuss further.