Petrodollar, war and the inevitable rise of gold and bitcoin: Robert Kiyosaki

Famous investor Robert Kiyosaki recently posted a series of attention-grabbing opinions, in which he argues that modern geopolitical history cannot be separated from the story of money — particularly the dominant role of the USD and the petrodollar system.

According to Kiyosaki, in 2000, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein announced that he would sell oil in euros instead of USD. At that time, very few people paid attention. Three years later, the U.S. launched the Iraq war. No weapons of mass destruction were found, but one “coincidental” thing happened: Iraqi oil quickly returned to being priced in USD.

Another lesson emerged in 2009 when Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi proposed the gold dinar — a gold-backed African currency that allowed nations to purchase oil without needing USD. In 2011, NATO intervened in Libya for “humanitarian reasons.” Gaddafi was overthrown, the gold dinar disappeared, and Libyan oil returned to the USD system.

Too many coincidences to be considered random.

The Roots of Petrodollar

Kiyosaki reiterated the turning point in 1971, when U.S. President Richard Nixon ended the gold standard, transforming the USD from a currency backed by gold into a promise based on trust. According to historical logic, the USD should have collapsed. But that did not happen.

The reason lies in the 1974 agreement between the US and Saudi Arabia, mediated by Henry Kissinger: Saudi Arabia would only sell oil in USD, in exchange for the US providing security for this kingdom. Since then, the whole world has been forced to hold USD to purchase energy.

This is not a free market, but a monetary policy protected by military power.

System Challenges and the Price to Pay

Modern history shows that any country trying to escape the petrodollar system must pay the price:

• Russia demands gas payments in rubles: sanctions and escalating tensions.
• Iran sells oil outside of USD: decades of being isolated.
• Syria discusses pipelines not priced in USD: escalating conflict, projects that will never come to fruition.

Even the SWIFT payment system, which is considered neutral, has become a geopolitical tool. Being excluded from SWIFT means being excluded from global trade — something that has happened to Russia, Iran, Cuba, or Venezuela, regardless of differences in political systems.

The Cycle of Monetary Empires

Kiyosaki believes that the U.S. is not an exception in the historical cycle. Before the USD, there was the British pound, and before that, the Dutch guilder. When a currency loses its status as a global reserve, the empire behind it also gradually declines.

Ray Dalio has repeatedly warned about the signs of a “late-stage empire:”

• Public debt is ballooning
• The army is overstretched.
• Weak currency
• Competitors build alternative systems

BRICS and non-USD payment initiatives do not stem from friendship, but from a financial survival need. China promotes the Belt and Road not for charity, but to create a network of debt and trade denominated in renminbi.

Why Gold and Bitcoin Benefit

In that context, gold and bitcoin have emerged as neutral assets, independent of any country or military alliance.

Gold has proven its role as a store of value for thousands of years, cannot be printed more, and cannot be punished. Bitcoin, with its fixed supply and decentralized network, is becoming the “digital gold” in the era of digital finance.

As the USD gradually loses its privileged status — the ability to print money without consequences — trust in hard, scarce, and uncontrollable assets will continue to increase.

That is not pessimism.

That is financial history.

Wars are always promoted with the slogan “freedom and democracy.” But in policy documents, what is mentioned more often is “maintaining USD liquidity in the global energy market.”

Kiyosaki concluded: he does not oppose the military, but opposes the lack of honesty. If society has to pay the price with lives and debts, at least the public needs to know where the real reasons lie.

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