Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, said in a July 5 post on X that two major developments from 1974 are now moving toward a breaking point: strain in the petrodollar system and mounting pressure in the US retirement structure as baby boomers leave the workforce. He tied both trends to 2026 and repeated his long-standing preference for gold, silver, and Bitcoin.
Kiyosaki traces the problem back to 1974
According to Kiyosaki, 1974 was a turning point. After the US left the gold standard, Washington reached an agreement with Saudi Arabia under which oil would be priced in US dollars and oil revenues would flow back into US Treasuries. That framework gave the dollar a new anchor and supported global demand for it for decades.
His current argument is that this structure is being chipped away rather than collapsing in a single moment. He wrote that the world is standing on the edge of an oil war in 2026. The source material links that claim to several developments: Iran is said to be considering transit fees in the Strait of Hormuz without accepting dollars, and the strait carries roughly 20% of global oil flows; the BRICS-backed mBridge cross-border payment platform has processed more than $55.5 billion, with 95% settled in digital yuan. Kiyosaki views these shifts as part of the long erosion of the petrodollar order and one structural driver behind rising inflation.
Retirement risk moved from employers to individuals
The second fault line he highlighted also dates to 1974, when the US passed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, or ERISA. Before that shift, many workers were covered by defined-benefit pensions that promised fixed lifetime payments. In the years that followed, the system moved heavily toward defined-contribution plans such as 401(k)s and IRAs. The burden of investment risk moved with it. Onto individuals.
Kiyosaki said millions of baby boomers are close to learning that once they stop working, they may have no income stream. The figures cited in the source are stark: about 45% of baby boomers have zero retirement savings; 2024 to 2030 marks the peak retirement wave; and two-thirds are not financially prepared. What looked like a policy design issue years ago is now becoming a real-world retirement problem.
The pressure extends beyond private savings. The source says the US Social Security trust fund is projected to be depleted around 2032 to 2033, while Medicare Part A faces strain around 2040. Kiyosaki used the image of retirees becoming homeless or living in RVs to describe what he thinks could happen to a large number of boomers.
His answer remains gold, silver, and Bitcoin
Kiyosaki did not change his prescription. He said people should keep saving what he calls “real money”: gold, silver, and Bitcoin, while continuing to build personal financial education.
He has previously set target prices of $250,000 for Bitcoin, $27,000 for gold, and $100 for silver. The source compares those targets with current market levels of about $4,685 for gold, down from a $5,600 January high, and about $66,500 for Bitcoin, with gains capped by rising US-Iran tensions. He also repeated a question he has asked for decades: why schools do not teach students about money.