China gold trader’s $300m silver short pays off

February 05, 2026 (MLN): A Chinese billionaire trader who earned nearly $3 billion from gold futures has built the largest net short position in silver on the Shanghai Futures Exchange.

The bet is now showing paper gains of almost $300 million after a sharp selloff in the metal, according to Bloomberg.

Bian Ximing, a low-profile commodities trader who operates largely through Zhongcai Futures Co., holds a short position equivalent to about 450 tons of silver, or roughly 30,000 contracts, according to Bloomberg analysis of exchange data and people familiar with the trades.

Silver’s decline of more than 16% over the past week has generated an estimated paper gain of around 2bn yuan ($288m) on the position.

Including losses incurred earlier during silver’s volatile rally, Bian is estimated to be sitting on a net profit of about 1bn yuan based on prices as of Tuesday.

Silver extended its decline again in Thursday trading, which would further increase the value of his short exposure.

The move marks a sharp shift for Bian, who gained prominence in China’s futures markets after riding gold’s record-breaking rally.

Since early 2022, his bullish positions in Shanghai Futures Exchange gold contracts have delivered nearly $3bn in profits, made him one of the most successful precious metals traders in the country.

Exchange data show that Bian began aggressively increasing silver short positions in the final week of January.

Zhongcai Futures’ silver short exposure rose to around 18,000 lots on January 28 and expanded to about 28,000 lots by January 30, the day silver prices in Shanghai hit an all-time high.

While SHFE does not disclose individual investor identities, people familiar with the matter said Bian’s personal trades, along with products he manages for a small group of clients, account for most of Zhongcai’s precious metals positions.

Bian’s bet has come with significant risk. During silver’s rapid price swings, he was forced to liquidate some positions at a loss as the metal continued to surge.

However, by last week he consolidated his short exposure, spreading it across longer-dated contracts and holding the position through renewed price volatility.

The subsequent selloff has, for now, validated that strategy.

The trade shows a broader reassessment of silver’s recent rally.

While gold continues to be viewed by many institutional investors as a hedge against interest-rate shifts, central-bank buying and geopolitical uncertainty, silver’s surge has increasingly been characterized as an industrial-driven move amplified by speculative positioning rather than underlying economic fundamentals.

Bian is known for avoiding public attention and spending much of his time in Gibraltar, yet he has developed a loyal following in China for his online writings on investment philosophy.

He previously built a large long position in silver starting in August last year, generating more than 1.3bn yuan in profits before beginning to reverse course in November as he attempted to call the peak of the rally.

Bloomberg reconstructed Zhongcai Futures’ position changes and estimated profits using daily data from the Shanghai Futures Exchange.

Because the exchange does not disclose position costs or detailed account information, the profit estimates may contain small discrepancies. Bian and Zhongcai Futures did not respond to requests for comment.

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