Investor Insights

Blackstone Minerals, through its subsidiary Crescent Mining and Development Corporation (CMDC) is focused on the Mankayan copper-gold project, an advanced exploration project in the Philippines. Mankayan is one of Southeast Asia’s largest undeveloped copper-gold porphyry, offering leveraged exposure to tightening global copper supply and increased copper demand.

Overview

Global decarbonization and electrification are driving sustained growth in copper demand, while new, large-scale copper discoveries remain scarce and development timelines lengthen. Long-life, high-quality copper projects with scale, grade, and infrastructure access are increasingly strategic and required to meet this future demand.

Historical Drilling Results at Mankayan

Blackstone Minerals (ASX:BSX), through CMDC, is advancing the Mankayan Copper-Gold Project in the Philippines following its merger with IDM International.

Mankayan stands out for its size, grade, and geological continuity, supported by extensive historical drilling and proximity to existing infrastructure. These attributes underpin a flexible development pathway and potential for long-life production.

As part of a strategic move, Blackstone has streamlined its asset base to prioritize Mankayan. A previously advanced nickel project in Vietnam is now subject to a binding strategic agreement with a local partner, materially reducing holding costs while allowing management and capital to be focused on the Company’s copper-gold strategy.

Company Highlights

• Flagship Copper-Gold Asset: Mankayan is a globally significant copper-gold porphyry system with a large 793 million tonne JORC-compliant resource.
• Indigenous Approval – The Mankayan Project holds a 25-year Mineral Production Sharing Agreement and has completed the social license with an FPIC finalized and a MoA in place.
• Scale and Development Optionality: A large, continuous mineral system supporting both staged, higher-grade development and long-life bulk mining scenarios.
• Established Mining District: Located in Northern Luzon, Philippines, near existing mining operations and infrastructure.
• 2026 Clear and focused roadmap: to derisk the Mankayan Project by advancing its Pre-Feasibility Study.
• Strengthened Leadership: Strong in-country team along with recent Board and management appointments enhance technical, operational, and regional capability.
• Strong Copper Leverage: Copper is a critical metal for electrification, renewable energy, and grid infrastructure, with long-term supply constraints supporting project optionality.

Key Project

Mankayan Copper-Gold Project – Philippines

The project is located in the prolific mineral belt of Northern Luzon, approximately 340 km north of Manila by road and around 2.5 km from the operating Lepanto gold mine and the Far Southeast project area.

Mankayan is one of the largest undeveloped copper-gold porphyry systems in Asia, extending over approximately 1,100 metres of strike and 600 metres of width, with mineralisation open along strike and at depth.

More than 56,000 metres of historical diamond drilling support a JORC compliant (2012) mineral resource estimate of 793 million tonnes at 0.35 percent copper and 0.38 grams per ton (g/t) gold, equivalent to 0.65 percent copper equivalent (CuEq*) at a 0.25% CuEq cut-off. Within this, a high-grade core of 170 million tonnes at 0.48 percent copper and 0.58 g/t gold, 0.93 percent (CuEq*) at a 0.8 percent cutoff provides potential for staged development scenarios.

Notable historical intercepts include:

• 911 m at 1.00 percent CuEq, including 253 m at 1.43 percent CuEq
• 543 m at 1.08 percent CuEq, including 277 m at 1.43 percent CuEq
• 1,119 m at 0.86 percent CuEq, including 352 m at 1.15 percent CuEq
• 754 m at 1.03 percent CuEq, including 430 m at 1.21 percent CuEq

Recent field activities have identified additional surface copper-gold mineralisation proximal to the main deposit, with rock-chip samples returning up to 6 g/t gold and 1.9 percent copper, highlighting further exploration upside across the broader project area.

CMDC is in the process of commencing a pre-feasibility study encompassing various mining scenarios and environmental studies.

Management Team

Geoff Gilmour – Executive Chairman

Appointed following Blackstone’s merger with IDM, Geoff Gilmour brings more than 30 years of distinguished leadership in the junior resources sector, with a proven track record of value creation. His career includes senior executive roles as Managing Director of Amex Resources, Brightstar, and Rift Valley Resources, and is highlighted by the successful creation of Andean Resources.

Gilmour has also served as chairman of IDM, where he played a pivotal role in advancing the Mankayan Project and leading the company through its merger with Blackstone Minerals. He currently serves as a director of Blackstone Minerals Ltd, continuing to drive strategic growth and development.

Oliver Cairns –Non-executive Director

Oliver Cairns brings key, hands-on experience to the company’s flagship Mankayan project in the Philippines and was part of the IDM International team that was responsible for the acquisition and management of the Mankayan project before the merger with

Blackstone in June 2025. He has deep familiarity with the Mankayan asset, including four years of actively working with the in-country team. In addition, Cairns offers more than 25 years of strategic corporate, IR and commercial experience.

Greg Cunnold – Non-executive Director

Greg Cunnold is a geologist with over 30 years of experience in the evaluation, exploration, and development of mineral deposits. Cunnold has worked on base and precious metals deposits, bulk commodities, rare earth elements, industrial minerals, and critical mineral projects. His assignments have spanned the globe, including Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and South America.

Over the years, Cunnold has played a pivotal role in numerous projects, contributing to the discovery, delineation, and development of valuable mineral deposits. His expertise ranges from grassroots exploration through to definitive feasibility studies. Cunnold is a Competent Person as defined by the JORC and NI 43-101 codes and has served corporately as a board member of private, public unlisted, and listed companies.

Mark Williams – Non-executive Director

Mark Williams’ career in the mining industry spans more than three decades and includes operational experience across a diverse range of assets in both mature and emerging global markets, with extensive in-country experience in the Philippines.

Most recently, Williams led mid-tier Australian gold producer Red 5 Limited (ASX: RED) for 10 years, overseeing an operational turnaround of its foundational asset in the Philippines, the Siana Gold Project, before initiating a transformational pivot to the West Australian goldfields through the acquisition, financing, development, construction and operation of the King of the Hills Gold Mine growing Red 5 to a $1.5 billion company in 2024 prior to its merger with Silver Lake Resources.

James Bahen – Company Secretary

James Bahen is a director and equity partner of SmallCap Corporate. He commenced his career in audit and assurance with an international chartered accounting firm. He is currently a non-executive director and company secretary to a number of ASX-listed companies and has a broad range of corporate governance and capital markets experience. Bahen is a member of the Governance Institute of Australia and holds a Graduate Diploma of Applied Finance and a Bachelor of Commerce degree majoring in accounting and finance.

Investor Insight

Copper Quest Exploration controls more than 40,000 hectares of copper porphyry projects across tier one jurisdictions in Canada and the United States, offering investors diversified exposure to drill ready targets and multiple near term discovery catalysts.

Overview

Copper Quest Exploration (CSE:CQX,OTCQB:IMIMF,FRA:3MX) is a North American mineral exploration company focused on discovering and advancing copper porphyry systems in established mining jurisdictions. Its portfolio spans more than 40,000 hectares across projects in British Columbia and Idaho, including several district scale land packages within proven copper belts.

Copper Quest holds a diversified portfolio of exploration assets, including 100 percent interests in the Stars, Stellar, Thane, and Kitimat projects, and the option to earn up to 80 percent in the Rip project. The company has rapidly expanded its portfolio and identified multiple high-priority exploration targets through strategic acquisitions, targeted drilling, and geophysical surveys.

In late 2025 and early 2026, Copper Quest significantly extended its presence with the acquisition of two key gold assets: the past-producing Alpine Gold Property in British Columbia’s West Kootenay region—a 4,611-hectare project with historical high-grade gold resources and existing underground workings—and an option to acquire the drill-permitted Auxer Gold Property in Bonner County, Idaho, a road-accessible, high-grade orogenic gold asset.

Copper Quest is focused on advancing its assets through systematic exploration including induced polarization surveys, mapping, sampling and drilling. Its strategy is to build value through discovery while leveraging partnerships or joint ventures to accelerate development where appropriate.

Company Highlights

• Large Tier One Land Position: More than 40,000 hectares across British Columbia and Idaho, coveringmultiple porphyry belts.
• Flagship Discovery atStars: Drill interceptsincluding 0.466 percent copper over 195.07 m confirm a fertile coppermolybdenum system.
• District Scale Portfolio: Core projects Stars, Stellar, Rip and Thanecollectively span 19,853 hectares within the Bulkley porphyry district alone.
• US Expansion Strategy: Acquisition of the Nekash copper gold project inLemhi County adds exposure to the Idaho Montana porphyry belt.
• Strategic Acquisitionsin British Columbia: Agreements to acquirethe Kitimat Copper Gold Project and the Alpine Gold Property expand regionalfootprint.
• Multiple UntestedTargets: Large geophysicalanomalies and historic showings across several properties remain undrilled.
• Strong Technical Bench: Leadership and advisors include former seniorexecutives from major mining companies with global discovery and developmenttrack records.
• Clear ExplorationPipeline: Planned drilling,geophysics and target testing across multiple projects with multiple plannedexploration catalysts.

Key Projects

Stars Project — British Columbia

The Stars project is a 9,694 hectare road accessible copper molybdenum property in the Bulkley porphyry belt. The project hosts a 5 by 2.5-kilometre annular magnetic anomaly coincident with a mineralized monzonite intrusion. Historic and modern drilling has confirmed widespread mineralization, including 0.466 percent copper over 195.07 m from 23 m and 0.2 percent copper over 396.67 m from 28.37 m.

Drilling indicates a productive porphyry environment characterized by strong alteration, multi phase veining and elevated copper values ranging from 10 times to 400 times background levels. Only one location along the intrusion contact has been drill tested, suggesting significant discovery potential across more than 30 km of untested contacts. Planned work includes step out drilling at the Tana Zone, IP surveys and testing of additional targets such as the Big Dipper anomaly.

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Rip Project — British Columbia

The Rip project covers 4,770 hectares located about 60 km south of Houston. A 2024 airborne magnetic survey and 3D DCIP program identified two concentric chargeability anomalies surrounding separate magnetic highs, classic signatures of porphyry systems.

Two diamond drill holes totaling 1,033 m completed in 2024 intersected multi phase porphyry intrusions with quartz, pyrite, chalcopyrite, molybdenite veining and long intervals of anomalous copper above 0.1 percent. The southern anomaly remains untested and represents the highest priority target. Copper Quest can earn up to 80 percent ownership by spending $1 million by the end of 2025.

Stellar Project — British Columbia

The 5,389-hectare Stellar property lies immediately north of Stars and consolidates multiple historic showings into a single geological framework. The project hosts several priority targets including the Cassiopeia anomaly, a 2.5-kilometre-diameter magnetic bullseye with an 800 m magnetic low core consistent with porphyry models.

The Jewelry Box area hosts eight documented showings across a 15 sq km zone with historical samples returning grades up to 36.7 percent copper, 31.2 percent copper, 22.6 percent copper with 4,860 g/t silver and gold values up to 42 g/t. Additional targets include the Galena Zone and Northwest showings. Planned work includes IP surveys, mapping, sampling and drill targeting across the property.

Thane Project — British Columbia

The 20,658 hectare Thane project is located in the Toodoggone District within the Quesnel Terrane. The property contains a 14 by 6 kilometre alteration footprint hosting at least ten mineralized centres including Cirque, Fairway, Bananas, Gail and Aten.

Historic exploration totaling more than $5 million identified strong copper and gold mineralization, with rock samples returning copper values exceeding 9,000 ppm and gold values up to 12.8 g/t. Only 12 short drill holes have been completed, all in one area, leaving much of the system untested. New high resolution geophysics is expected to help vector future drilling. Copper Quest is evaluating potential joint venture opportunities to advance the project.

Nekash Project — Idaho

The Nekash project consists of 70 unpatented federal lode claims covering about 585 hectares in Lemhi County along the Idaho Montana porphyry belt. Historic sampling confirmed high grade surface mineralization including up to 3.8 percent copper, 0.9 g/t gold and 25 g/t silver over 6.4 m, as well as porphyry style veins grading up to 6.6 percent copper.

The property is fully road accessible and was acquired for 4.25 million shares with no cash payment or royalties. The project adds US exposure and early stage discovery potential supported by geophysical, geochemical and drilling programs.

Kitimat Copper-Gold Project — British Columbia

Copper Quest has acquired a 100 percent interest in the Kitimat copper-gold project, located approximately 10 km northwest of the deep-water port of Kitimat. Covering nearly 2,954 hectares, the project offers year-round road access, proximity to rail, hydroelectric infrastructure, and is situated within a prolific copper-gold belt, strengthening the company’s strategic presence in western Canada.

Alpine Gold Property — British Columbia

The Alpine Gold Property is a road-accessible, 4,611.49-hectare project featuring a 2018 historical inferred resource of 142,000 ounces of gold (Au) from 268,000 tonnes at an average grade of 16.52 g/t Au, estimated using a 5.0 g/t gold cut-off grade. The current resource is based on only about 300 meters of the roughly two-kilometer-long vein system, indicating substantial potential to expand the resource along strike and to depth.

The property includes 1,650 meters of clean underground workings and a mineralized stockpile estimated at 24,000 tonnes on the surface, which could offer near-term cash flow. Additionally, the property hosts at least four other relatively unexplored vein systems—Black Prince, Cold Blow, Gold Crown, and past-producing King Solomon—all with historic high-grade gold values, suggesting multiple avenues for future exploration and resource growth.

Auxer Gold Project — Idaho

The Auxer Gold Property is a road-accessible, high-grade orogenic gold opportunity located in Bonner County, Idaho. Under an option agreement signed in 2026, Copper Quest has the right to earn up to 75 percent interest in the project by funding exploration, advancing a drill-ready gold target within a favorable mining jurisdiction. The property is strategically situated near existing infrastructure and historic gold workings, enhancing access and permitting potential.

Gold mineralization at Auxer has been identified through surface sampling and historic data, with notable results including significant gold in soils and rock samples, supporting multiple structural targets. The addition of Auxer diversifies Copper Quest’s portfolio beyond copper porphyries into a precious metals domain, providing near term exploration catalysts that complement its existing projects. Planned work includes systematic mapping, sampling and drill permitting to define high-priority targets for follow up drilling.

Management Team

Brian Thurston — President, CEO and Director

Brian Thurston is a professional geologist with over 32 years of experience specializing in porphyry deposits in British Columbia, the Yukon and Peru. Thurston has more than 20 years of corporate leadership experience and has founded several public companies, serving as director, officer and committee member across multiple resource ventures.

Dong Shim — Chief Financial Officer

Dong Shim is a chartered professional accountant with extensive experience in public company auditing and financial reporting in both the United States and Canada. Shim has helped numerous startups achieve listings on the TSX Venture Exchange, CSE and OTC Markets and is a CPA registered in Illinois and a member of the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia.

Dr. Mark Cruise — Director

Dr. Mark Cruise has more than 25 years of experience in mine discovery, development and operations across Europe, South America, Canada and Africa. Cruise is the founder of Trevali Mining, which he built into a top ten global zinc producer, and previously worked as a senior geologist at Anglo American.

Jason Nickel — Director

Jason Nickel is a mining engineer with over 25 years of experience in operations, feasibility and development projects. Nickel has served as mine manager for major copper and gold producers and has led underground and open pit operations across British Columbia, Alaska and the Arctic.

Cameron MacDonald — Director

Cameron MacDonald has more than 18 years of capital markets experience as founder and CEO of the Macam Group of Companies. MacDonald has helped raise over $300 million in equity and more than $650 million in debt financings and has invested in startup companies since 2002.

Joshua White – Technical Advisor

Joshua White is an exploration geologist with more than 13 years of experience and is principal of Aqua Terra Geoscientists LLC. White previously worked for Kinross Gold as a project generation geologist supporting exploration programs across four continents.

Top 5 gold and silver royalty companies

The biggest companies in the precious metals royalty and streaming space have long histories and have built positive reputations on the backs of strong investments. They offer a means for investors to de-risk an entry into the gold sector by maintaining an arms-length attachment to it.

The five large-cap gold and silver royalty and streaming companies on this list had market caps above $1 billion in their respective currencies as of February 24, 2026.

1. Wheaton Precious Metals (TSX:WPM,NYSE:WPM)

Market cap: C$96.95 billion
Share price: C$215.66

Wheaton Precious Metals was established in 2004 as Silver Wheaton with a focus on silver streaming. Goldcorp held a majority interest, but began to reduce it in 2006 and by 2008 had completely divested itself. By that time, Silver Wheaton had begun to diversify into other precious metals. The following year, Silver Wheaton acquired rival silver streaming stock Silverstone Resources in a C$190 million deal.

Silver Wheaton changed its name in 2017 to Wheaton Precious Metals and has since built itself into one of the largest players in the gold and silver royalty and streaming space, with investments in 23 operating mines and 25 development projects across five continents.

Included in Wheaton’s assets are investments in Newmont’s (TSX:NGT,NYSE:NEM,ASX:NEM) Peñasquito mine in Mexico, Sibanye Stillwater’s (NYSE:SBSW) Stillwater and East Boulder mines in Montana, United States, and Hudbay Minerals’ (TSX:HBM,NYSE:HBM) Copper World Complex project in Arizona, US.

2. Franco-Nevada (TSX:FNV,NYSE:FNV)

Market cap: C$71.55 billion
Share price: C$374.47

A trailblazer in the gold royalty business, Franco-Nevada has set a high bar. The current iteration of the company was spun out of Newmont in what became a C$1.1 billion initial public offering, one of the biggest IPOs of 2007.

Franco-Nevada now has a portfolio of royalties and streams on 119 producing assets around the world including gold, silver, base metal and oil and gas operations, which generate more than US$1.2 billion for the company annually. Additionally, the company’s portfolio includes 38 advanced-stage assets and 273 exploration-stage assets.

Among the producing assets for which Franco-Nevada has precious metals streams and royalties are Glencore’s (LSE:GLEN,OTC Pink:GLCNF) Antapaccay mine in Peru, Agnico Eagle’s (NYSE:AEM,TSX:AEM) Detour Lake mine in Ontario, Canada, and Gold Fields’ (NYSE:GFI) Salares Norte mine in Chile.

See the sections above for more information on Franco-Nevada’s royalty and streaming deals.

3. Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD)

Market cap: US$24.43 billion
Share price: US$288.04

Royal Gold got its start in 1981 as oil and gas exploration and production company Royal Resources.

Responding to shifts in the overall resource market, by 1987, Royal Gold was born with a focus on building a portfolio of minority positions in significant gold properties operated by major mining firms.

Today, Royal Gold is a leading precious metals streaming and royalty company with interest in about 400 properties, of which 82 are producing assets, across 31 countries.

About half of its portfolio came from its October 2025 acquisition of Sandstorm Gold and Horizon Copper, which combined for 230 royalty assets, including 40 producing assets.

Among Royal Gold’s royalty assets are Barrick Mining (TSX:ABX,NYSE:B) and Newmont’s Cortez mine in Nevada, US, Teck’s (TSX:TECK.A,TECK.B,NYSE:TECK) Andacollo mine in Chile and Centerra Gold’s (TSX:CG,NYSE:CGAU) Mount Milligan mine in British Columbia, Canada.

4. Triple Flag Precious Metals (TSX:TFPM)

Market cap: C$10.96 billion
Share price: C$53.67

Triple Flag Precious Metals was founded in 2016 by Shaun Usmar, a former Barrick executive and current CEO of Vale’s (NYSE:VALE) Vale Base Metals.

Although the company is a relative newcomer to the royalty and streaming space, it has quickly established itself as a frontrunner through several significant deals. Among them was the acquisition of Maverix Metals in January 2023, which helped them become the fourth-largest precious metals royalty company.

Today, Triple Flag has a global portfolio of gold and silver assets on nearly every continent, comprising 33 production assets and 206 in development or exploration.

Highlights from its portfolio include streaming and royalty deals on Evolution Mining’s (ASX:EVN,OTC Pink:CAHPF) Northparkes mine in New South Wales, Australia, Nexa Resources’ (NYSE:NEXA) Cerro Lindo mine in Peru, and Westgold Resources’ (ASX:WGX,OTC Pink:WGXRF) Beta Hunt mine in Western Australia.

5. OR Royalties (TSX:OR,NYSE:OR)

Market cap: C$11.49 billion
Share price: C$62.31

Previously named Osisko Gold Royalties, OR Royalties was created in 2014 as a spinoff deal between Osisko Mining (TSX:OSK), Yamana Gold and Agnico Eagle Mines (TSX:AEM,NYSE:AEM). The deal was made in an attempt to prevent a hostile takeover of Osisko Mining and its Canadian Malartic gold complex by Goldcorp, now part of Newmont.

In the deal, OR Royalties carried with it a 5 percent net smelter return royalty from the Canadian Malartic mine. Now owned by Agnico Eagle, the complex in Québec remains a cornerstone of the royalty company’s business today.

The gold and silver royalty and streaming company has gone on to amass royalties, streams and offtakes for 195 assets, 22 of which are producing, across six continents.

The majority are located in North America, including one of the most well-known gold-producing mines in the world, Agnico Eagle’s Canadian Malartic complex in Québec, as well as SSR Mining’s (NASDAQ:SSRM,TSX:SSRM) Seabee mine in Saskatchewan, Canada, and Kinross Gold’s (TSX:K,NYSE:KGC) Bald Mountain mine in Nevada.

Small-cap gold and silver royalty companies

There are also small-cap gold and silver royalty and streaming companies you can invest in and offer a lower-cost option for investors who are comfortable with a little more risk. Like their larger counterparts, small-cap gold royalty stocks offer a lower-risk investment than getting into a small-cap mining company but still provide access to the underlying precious metals market.

The five small-cap gold and silver royalty companies on this list had market caps above $10 million in their respective currencies as of February 24, 2026.

1. Gold Royalty (NYSEAMERICAN:GROY)

Market cap: US$1.04 billion
Share price: US$4.59

Gold Royalty is building a diversified portfolio of more than 240 gold royalty and gold streaming interests based on net smelter return royalties on properties in the Americas.

The company’s revenue generating investments include Agnico Eagle’s Canadian Malartic complex in Québec, DPM Metals’ (TSX:DPM) Vareš mine in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Discovery Silver’s (TSX:DSV,OTCQX:DSVSF) Borden mine in Ontario.

2. Metalla Royalty & Streaming (TSXV:MTA,NYSE:MTA)

Market cap: C$1.04 billion
Share price: C$11.67

Metalla Royalty & Streaming focuses on gold, silver and copper projects. The company’s royalty model involves acquiring royalties and streams by offering resource companies Metalla shares and cash.

The mid-tier royalty and streaming company’s asset portfolio includes more than 100 projects across North America, South America and Australia. Its cornerstone assets include IAMGOLD (TSX:IMG,NYSE:IAG) and Sumitomo Metal Mining’s (OTC Pink:SSUMF,TSE:5713) Côté gold mine in Ontario, Canada, and First Quantum Minerals’ (TSX:FM) Taca Taca project in Argentina.

3. Vox Royalty (TSX:VOXR,NASDAQ:VOXR)

Market cap: C$518.16 million
Share price: C$7.81

Vox Royalty is a precious metals focused royalty company first established in 2014. The company has acquired an asset portfolio of 70 royalties, 32 of which were added since 2019, across Australia, the Americas and South Africa.

Roughly 70 percent of its portfolio is dedicated to gold, silver and platinum group companies. The remainder of its portfolio is diversified across a wide range of resources, including copper, uranium, iron and diamonds.

The majority of the eight producing assets in its portfolio are located in Australia, including a 1 percent net smelter return from Black Cat Syndicate’s Bulong gold mine, and a 2.5 percent net smelter return from Northern Star Resources’s (ASX:NST,OTCPL:NESRF) Otto Bore gold mine.

As for development stage projects, its assets in Canada include a 1 percent net smelter return on NexGold Mining’s (TSXV:NEXG,OTCQX:NXGCF) Goldlund project and a 2 percent gross proceeds royalty on Alamos Gold’s (TSX:AGI,NYSE:AGI) Lynn Lake project in Canada.

4. Sailfish Royalty (TSXV:FISH,OTCQX:SROYF)

Market cap: C$324.08 million
Share price: C$3.79

Founded in 2014, Sailfish Royalty’s asset portfolio is much smaller than the other gold royalty stocks on this list. It consists of one producing mine as well as two development-stage and two exploration-stage properties in the Americas.

In Nicaragua, Sailfish has a gold stream equivalent to a 3 percent net smelter return on Mako Mining’s (TSXV:MKO,OTCQX:MAKOF) San Albino gold mine and a 2 percent net smelter return on the area surrounding the mine. The company also holds a 13,500 ounce per quarter silver stream at the property, which was set to expire in May 2025. At the end of April 2025, Sailfish chose to exercise its option to purchase all silver for the life of the mine.

5. Nations Royalty (TSXV:NRC,OTCQB:NRYCF)

Market cap: C$160.68 million
Share price: C$1.16

Nations Royalty is a fledgling royalties company that first began trading in June 2024 and holds Indigenous-owned royalties. It was founded by the Nisga’a Nation of British Columbia, Canada, and by Wheaton Precious Metals co-founder Frank Giustra. It is the first publicly traded company in Canada to have a majority Indigenous ownership.

The company has a portfolio of royalties covering one production and four development assets, all located in Northwestern British Columbia. The majority of these royalties are in the form of annual payments equal to a percentage of the mineral tax the assets’ operators pay.

The producing mine in its portfolio is Newmont’s (NYSE:NEM,ASX:NEM) Brucejack gold-silver operation. The four development assets consist of Ascot Resources’ (TSX:AOT,OTCID:AOTVF) Premier and Red Mountain projects, Seabridge Gold’s (TSX:SEA,NYSE:SA) KSM project and New Moly’s Kitsault molybdenum project.

Gold and silver royalty ETFs

Those who want more broad exposure to the precious metals markets may want to buy shares of an exchange-traded fund that includes gold and silver royalty and streaming stocks. Here are a few to get you started, including ASX gold ETFs and a US gold ETF.

Betashares Global Royalties ETF (ASX:ROYL)
The Betashares Global Royalties ETF is an Australian ETF that tracks the performance of an index of global companies that earn a significant amount of their revenue from royalty income, royalty-related income and intellectual property income. The fund’s top two holdings are Wheaton Precious Metals and Franco-Nevada, with Royal Gold and OR Royalties also among its significant holdings.

Betashares Global Gold Miners ETF (ASX:MNRS)
The Betashares Global Gold Miners ETF tracks the performance of an index of the world’s largest gold mining companies outside of Australia, hedged into Australian dollars. Wheaton Precious Metals, Franco-Nevada and Royal Gold are also among the fund’s top holdings.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF (ARCA:GDX)
The VanEck Gold Miners ETF is a US gold ETF that aims to replicate the performance of the MarketVector Global Gold Miners Index by holding large-cap gold mining stocks and precious metals royalty companies. As with the other gold ETFs on this list, its top holdings include Franco-Nevada, Wheaton Precious Metals and Royal Gold.

20 year COMEX copper price chart, 2006 to 2026.

Chart via Macrotrends.

The pandemic’s impact on mine supply and refined copper in 2020 pushed prices higher despite the economic slowdown. The copper price climbed from a low of US$2.17 in March to close out the year at US$3.52.

In 2021, signs of economic recovery and supercharged interest in EVs and renewable energy pushed the price of copper to rally higher and higher. Copper topped US$4.90 per pound for the first time ever on May 10, 2021, before falling back to close at US$4.76.

Also affecting the copper price at that time was expectations for higher copper demand amid supply concerns out of two of the world’s major copper producers: Chile and Peru. In late April 2021, port workers in Chile called for a strike, while in Peru presidential candidate Pedro Castillo proposed nationalizing mining and redrafting the country’s constitution.

In early May 2021, news broke that copper inventories were at their lowest point in 15 years. Expert market watchers such as Bank of America commodity strategist Michael Widmer warned that further inventory declines into 2022 could lead to a copper market deficit.

After climbing to start 2022 at US$4.52, the copper price continued to spike on economic recovery expectations and supply shortages to reach US$5.02 per pound on March 6. Throughout the first quarter, fears of supply chain disruptions and historically low stockpiles amid rising copper demand drove prices higher.

However, copper prices pulled back in mid-2022 on worries that further COVID-19 lockdowns in China, as well as a growing mortgage crisis, would slow down construction and infrastructure activity in the Asian nation. Rising inflation and interest hikes by the Fed also placed downward pressure on a wide basket of commodities, including copper. By late July 2022, copper prices were trading down at nearly a two year low of around US$3.30.

In the early months of 2023 the copper price was trading over the US$4 per pound level after receiving a helpful boost from continuing concerns about low copper inventories, signs of rebounding demand from China, and news about the closure of Peru’s Las Bambas mine, which accounts for 2 percent of global copper production.

However, that boost turned to a bust in the second half of 2023 as China continued to experience real estate sector issues, alongside the economic woes of the rest of the world. The price of copper dropped to a low for the year of US$3.56 per pound in mid October.

Elevated supply levels kept copper trading in the US$3.50 to US$3.80 range for much of Q1 2024 before experiencing strong gains that pushed the price of the red metal to US$4.12 on March 18.

Those gains were attributed to in part to tighter copper concentrate supply following the closure of First Quantum Minerals’ Cobre Panama mine, guidance cuts from Anglo American (LSE:AAL,OTCQX:AAUKF) and declining production at Chile’s Chuquicamata mine. In addition, China’s top copper smelters announced production cuts after limited supply led to lower profits from treatment and refining charges.

BHP’s (ASX:BHP,NYSE:BHP,LSE:BHP) attempted takeover of Anglo American also stoked fears of even tighter global copper mine supply. These supply-side challenges continued to juice copper prices in Q2 2024, causing a jump of nearly 29 percent from US$4.04 per pound on April 1 to a then all-time high of US$5.20 by May 20, 2024.

After starting 2025 at US$3.99 per pound, copper prices were lifted in Q1 by increasing demand from China’s economic stimulus measures, renewable energy and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and stockpiling brought on by fear of US President Trump’s tariff threats.

At the time, Trump had said the US was considering placing tariffs of up to 25 percent on all copper imports in a bid to spark increased domestic production of the base metal.

In late February, he signed an executive order instructing the US Commerce Department to investigate whether imported copper poses a national security risk under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. The price of copper reached a new high price of US$5.24 per pound on March 26 as tariff tensions escalated.

Trump’s tariff talk sparked yet another copper price rally in early July when he announced he plans to impose a 50 percent tariff on all imports of the red metal, and it moved higher towards the end of the month in anticipation of them entering effect. By the end of the month, the copper price had climbed to US$5.96 per pound.

However, copper’s price plummeted back toward the US$4 mark on July 31 following the reveal that tariffs would not be imposed on imports of raw or refined copper, instead targeting semi-finished copper products.

The price began to rebound once again in September following the accident at Freeport McMoRan’s Grasberg mine, ultimately tipping the market from a surplus position into a deficit.

The price crossed back above the US$5 mark by the end of October, and, with supply and demand fundamentals fueling its momentum, copper was trading at US$5.60 by the end of 2025.

What was the highest price for copper ever?

The highest ever copper price on the COMEX is US$6.61 per pound, while the highest LME copper price is US$14,572.54 per metric ton. Copper hit both of these new all-time highs on January 29, 2026. Read on to found out how the copper price reached those heights.

Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$64,409.84, down by 4.4 percent over the last 24 hours.

Bitcoin price performance, February 23, 2026.

Chart via TradingView.

XS.com senior market analyst Linh Tran suggested that the medium-term uptrend is limited without major catalysts. She predicts that Bitcoin will fluctuate between US$65,000 support and US$70,000 resistance; however, if current pressures persist, there is a risk of Bitcoin retesting the US$60,000 low, which could trigger a deeper decline.

Software stocks slipped alongside a further decline in crypto prices after Anthropic said its Claude platform can help ‘break the cost barrier to COBOL modernization,’ a high-level, compiled computer programming language that the firm says ‘runs in production every day, powering critical systems in finance, airlines, and government.’

Ether (ETH) was priced at US$1,860.34, down by 4.1 percent over the last 24 hours.

Altcoin price update

• XRP (XRP) was priced at US$1.36, down by 2 percent over 24 hours.

• Solana (SOL) was trading at US$78.37, down by 5.6 percent over 24 hours.

Today’s crypto news to know

Yield Basis thrives on market volatility

Some parts of the DeFi ecosystem have benefited from the chaos of Bitcoin’s sudden price drop in January, which liquidated billions of dollars’ worth of positions. A DeFi project called Yield Basis, which helps people trade Bitcoin and Ether through its liquidity pools, says it’s handled US$769 million in trades since the beginning of 2026, with more than half occurring after January 28, when crypto prices began swinging wildly.

According to a recent report, the protocol has collected US$12.15 million in fees since it launched its v2 pools in November 2025, compared to US$5.31 million worth of tokens it paid out as rewards, leaving about US$6.84 million in net profit for the users providing liquidity and holding the project’s tokens.

Open-source AI project distances itself from crypto

An open-source AI agent framework known as OpenClaw has inadvertently become the center of a crypto controversy. The project, built to power autonomous agents capable of browsing the web and executing complex tasks, was briefly rebranded amid a naming dispute before scammers launched a fake Solana-based token using its former branding.

The token’s market capitalization surged to roughly US$16 million within hours before collapsing more than 90 percent after developer Peter Steinberger disavowed any connection.

Steinberger publicly rejected the speculation, writing on X: “To all crypto folks: please stop pinging me, stop harassing me. I will never do a coin. Any project that lists me as coin owner is a SCAM.”

USDT contraction flashes rare stress signal

Tether’s USDT stablecoin is signaling liquidity strain reminiscent of the market turmoil following the FTX collapse.

According to CryptoQuant, the 60 day change in USDT supply has dropped to negative US$3 billion, which marks only the second time such a contraction has occurred. Bloomberg reported that USDT is on pace for its steepest monthly supply decline since December 2022, already shrinking by roughly US$1.5 billion in February alone.

Large-scale redemptions typically suggest institutions or major holders are pulling capital out of the crypto ecosystem rather than simply rotating between tokens. The last comparable contraction came as Bitcoin fell toward US$16,000 during the FTX crisis before stabilizing and beginning a multi-year recovery.

Gold’s insurance premium

Nowhere has geopolitical risk been more visible than in gold.

The metal surged to fresh highs in early 2026 after setting 40 new records in 2024 and 53 more in 2025, a pace not seen since 1979. The price briefly pushed beyond US$5,500 per ounce at the start of the year.

“The message from this price action is unmistakable,” Holden said. “In an uncertain world, the market is paying a premium for insurance, and gold is the ultimate safe asset.”

While short-term flashpoints helped fuel the rally, the structural driver has been central bank buying. Since sanctions in 2022 prompted reserve managers to rethink US dollar exposure, official sector purchases have accelerated.

“The sustained buying from central banks is the real engine behind the rally,” Holden said.

S&P’s base case sees gold averaging US$4,247 per ounce in 2026, with upside potential toward US$6,000 by 2027 in a more bullish scenario.

Copper tightness, nickel politics

Luiz Amaral from S&P’s exploration team said copper ended 2025 on strong footing, with London Metal Exchange (LME) prices reaching US$12,500 per metric ton in December.

Supply-side tightness, a weaker US dollar and copper’s growing role in electrification supported prices. The US decision to formally list copper as a critical mineral reinforced its strategic importance.

S&P has lifted its 2026 copper price forecast to US$11,400 per metric ton, projecting a 543,000 metric ton concentrate deficit next year. However, the refined market is expected to move into surplus later in the decade as new smelter capacity ramps up. Longer term, the concentrate picture darkens again.

“Our base case shows a 3 million metric ton shortfall by 2036,” Amaral said.

Nickel’s recent rally, by contrast, has been driven more by policy than fundamentals. The price broke above US$18,000 per metric ton in January after Indonesia reduced its 2026 production quota.

“The market is responding emotionally to policy updates,” Amaral said, noting that despite the rally, the broader market remains in surplus and LME inventories are building.

Lithium rebounds amid persistent surplus

Lithium prices have also staged a sharp rebound, rising 57 percent in China between mid-December and mid-January on renewed demand optimism and supply concerns. Yet S&P expects the market to remain oversupplied for most of the decade, with deficits not emerging until the early 2030s.

New supply from Australia, Latin America and China continues to outpace demand growth, even as electric vehicles account for roughly 75 percent of lithium consumption through 2035.

Diverging margins

At the mine level, gold producers are enjoying some of the strongest margins in years, with prices rising faster than all-in sustaining costs. Silver has outperformed even more dramatically, climbing 154 percent in 2025 versus gold’s 71 percent gain, compressing the gold-silver ratio to below 70.

Battery metals face a tougher backdrop.

“Lithium and nickel continue to face margin pressure as prices lag elevated costs amid oversupply,” said Monica Ramirez from S&P’s mine economics and emissions team.

Across 12 metals analyzed, S&P sees a structurally higher cost environment emerging due to inflation, energy expenses and maturing ore bodies. Precious metals retain the strongest buffers, while copper remains positive but increasingly sensitive at the upper end of the cost curve.

Exploration at a crossroads

Despite record prices in some commodities, exploration spending tells a more cautious story.

Global exploration budgets totaled US$12.4 billion in 2025, down 1 percent year-on-year. Adjusted for inflation, spending has slipped back to levels last seen nearly two decades ago.

“Gold continues to dominate,” Amaral said, accounting for roughly half of global exploration budgets. Lithium, once a standout, saw budgets fall nearly 50 percent amid weaker prices.

More concerning is the structural shift away from grassroots exploration.

In the mid-1990s, two-thirds of spending targeted generative programs. Today, that share has fallen to a record low as companies prioritize near-mine and late-stage work.

“We are underinvesting at the very front end of the supply chain,” Amaral warned. Without renewed grassroots spending, the long-term discovery pipeline could suffer.

M&A: Quality over quantity

Mining M&A remained active into late 2025, though deal value normalized after earlier mega-mergers. Transaction value fell 45 percent quarter-on-quarter to US$16.1 billion, but deal count rose to its highest level in more than five years.

Gold led activity, with buyers focusing on large-scale, long-life assets in low-risk jurisdictions.

“Gold M&A today is no longer about simple volume growth,” Ramirez emphasized to viewers. “It’s about asset quality, jurisdictional safety and durable cashflow.”

As the webinar made clear, mining is navigating a landscape defined by geopolitical risk, tighter capital and structural cost pressures. For companies able to secure high-quality assets and control costs, opportunities remain, but the margin for error is narrowing.

Bullet briefing — TSX Venture 50, BHP/Wheaton deal

Gold, silver dominate TSX Venture 50

The latest TSX Venture 50 list was released on Wednesday, with gold and silver juniors dominating. In fact, of the companies included, only three fall outside the mining sector.

The list ranks TSXV companies’ annual performance by market cap growth, share price performance and Canadian consolidated trading value. Taking the top spot was Santacruz Silver Mining (TSXV:SCZ,NASDAQ:SCZM), which had an impressive share price increase of over 1,100 percent.

As a group, the companies on the list delivered a share price increase of 431 percent.

We’ll have to wait and see whether these types of gains are repeated — or exceeded — in 2026, but the list definitely underscores the strength in gold and silver prices, and shows that their momentum is boosting not just the majors, but also the juniors.

BHP, Wheaton sign streaming deal

On the M&A side, BHP (ASX:BHP,NYSE:BHP,LSE:BHP) has entered into a long-term streaming agreement with Wheaton Precious Metals (TSX:WPM,NYSE:WPM).

Under the deal, which was signed by subsidiaries of BHP and Wheaton, BHP will receive an upfront payment of US$4.3 billion in exchange for the delivery of silver from the Peru-based Antamina mine, plus ongoing payments when metal is delivered. According to BHP, this is the most valuable streaming transaction to date based on upfront consideration received.

Antamina is a joint venture between commodities giants BHP, Glencore (LSE:GLEN,OTCPL:GLCNF), Teck Resources (TSX:TECK.A,TECK.B,NYSE:TECK) and Mitsubishi (TSE:8058,OTCPL:MSBHF), and Wheaton already has a silver stream in place with Glencore. Once the BHP arrangement closes, Wheaton will receive a combined 67.5 percent of the mine’s silver.