With Oil Prices Surging, Investors Gravitate to Physical Assets Like Silver; SMX Provides Digital Technology to Certify

NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / October 8, 2026 / As silver pushes toward $70 an ounce and investors seek assets they can physically own, SMX is giving the precious metal something increasingly valuable: a persistent digital identity embedded directly into the material. Through its molecular marking technology, SMX can mark silver at the molecular level, creating an invisible, tamper-resistant identity designed to remain with the metal through refining, melting, manufacturing, transportation, storage, recycling and resale. That identity can be connected to a secure digital record documenting the silver's composition, origin, provenance and chain of custody, creating a new layer of certification that travels with the asset itself.

Silver is also finding a powerful new constituency: younger consumers. Millennials and Gen Z are embracing silver across jewelry, fashion and design, drawn to its cooler aesthetic, versatility and accessibility compared with gold. In the U.S., consumers ages 20 to 40 have emerged as the biggest buyers of silver jewelry, while silver and other cool metallic finishes are increasingly influencing home and interior design. That means demand for silver is being shaped not only by investors and industry, but by a younger generation incorporating the metal into what they wear, buy and bring into their homes.