Hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio warned that the US is heading into ‘very dark times.’ How to protect your portfolio

Geopolitics aside, his economic message appears to have struck a chord. The podcast — titled “Ray Dalio: We’re Heading Into Very, Very Dark Times! America & The UK’s Decline Is Coming!” — has racked up nearly 6 million views on YouTube, as of February 2026 (1).

But is he right to be so gloomy? And are you at financial risk?

Here are a few ways to cut down on your risk profile — but still make some healthy financial gains.

Dalio’s plan for ‘bad times’

For investors, Dalio’s outlook is sobering: mounting debt, widening political divides and a high-stakes rivalry with China. But he also offered a simple way to guard against those risks — the very principle that helped him build the world’s largest hedge fund.

“I learned how to diversify my bets so that I could dramatically reduce my risk without reducing my returns,” he said on the podcast (1). “Following those principles took me to the biggest hedge fund in the world, the most successful and so on.”

Diversifying may sound basic, but Dalio insists it’s powerful. After all, who wouldn’t want to lower risk without giving up returns?

While he didn’t list specific assets in that interview, Dalio has elsewhere consistently emphasized the importance of diversification, singling out one classic hedge — gold.

“People don’t have, typically, an adequate amount of gold in their portfolio,” he told CNBC (3). “When bad times come, gold is a very effective diversifier.”

Long viewed as the ultimate safe haven, gold isn’t tied to any single country, currency or economy. It can’t be printed out of thin air like fiat money, and in times of economic turmoil or geopolitical uncertainty, investors tend to pile in — driving up its value.

Seeing gold — and profiting

Gold hit record-breaking highs in January 2026, and despite a recent slump in February, JP Morgan reportedly sees the yellow metal hitting a new high of $6,300 by the end of 2026 (5).

If you’re looking to cash in on the gold rush, one way to invest in gold that also provides significant tax advantages is to open a gold IRA with the help of Priority Gold.

Gold IRAs allow investors to hold physical gold or gold-related assets within a retirement account, which combines the tax advantages of an IRA with the protective benefits of investing in gold, making it an attractive option for those looking to potentially hedge their retirement funds against economic uncertainties.

To learn more, you can get a free information guide that includes details on how to get up to $10,000 in free silver on qualifying purchases.

A tangible, time-tested income play

Gold isn’t the only asset seasoned investors look to as an alternative. Real estate has long been a cornerstone of diversification because it offers something different: a physical, income-producing asset that can keep working even when markets turn volatile.

Property values often rise with inflation, reflecting the increasing costs of land, labor and materials. Rental income typically climbs as well, providing a steady cash flow that isn’t tied to the daily swings of the stock market.

Real estate has also built fortunes for some of the world’s most prominent figures — including the current U.S. commander in chief, Donald Trump.

“I just notice that when you have that right piece of property, whatever it might be, including location, it tends to work well in good times and in bad times,” Trump told Steve Forbes back in 2011 (6).

Time to arrive as a real estate mogul

Becoming a real estate mogul is easier than ever today. In fact, you don’t even need to buy a property outright anymore to benefit from real estate investing.

You can now tap into this market by investing in shares of vacation homes or rental properties through Arrived, which offers an easier way to get exposure to this income-generating asset class.

Backed by world-class investors like Jeff Bezos, Arrived allows you to invest in shares of rental homes with as little as $100, all without the hassle of mowing lawns, fixing leaky faucets or handling difficult tenants.

And getting in on the action is so easy. Just browse a curated selection of homes that have been vetted for their appreciation and income potential, and once you find a property you like, select the number of shares you’d like to purchase.

Then, sit back as you start receiving any positive rental income distributions from your investment.

Tapping into multifamily real estate

Speaking of easy, there are more easy ways to tap into the real estate market through rental types like multifamily units.

And this is not a niche market: Multifamily buildings are now the most common type of rental housing in America, according to a 2026 Redfin report (7). In their survey, they found multifamily units now make up 33.1% of renter-occupied housing units in America, surpassing single-family units, which only account for 31%.

So, if diversifying into multifamily rentals appeals to you, you could consider investing with Lightstone DIRECT, a new investing platform from the Lightstone Group, one of the largest private real estate companies in the country with over 25,000 multifamily units in its portfolio.

Since they eliminate intermediaries — brokers and crowdfunding middlemen — accredited investors with a minimum investment of $100,000 can gain direct access to institutional-quality multifamily opportunities. This streamlined model can help reduce fees while enhancing transparency and control.

And with Lightstone DIRECT, you invest in single-asset multifamily deals alongside Lightstone — a true partner — as Lightstone puts at least 20% of its own capital into every offering. All of Lightstone’s investment opportunities undergo a rigorous, multi-stage review before being approved by Lightstone’s Principals, including Founder David Lichtenstein.

How it works is simple: Just sign up with your email, and you can schedule a call with a capital formation expert to assess your investment opportunities. From here, all you have to do is verify your details to begin investing.

Founded in 1986, Lightstone has a proven track record of delivering strong risk-adjusted returns across market cycles with a 27.6% historical net IRR and 2.54x historical net equity multiple on realized investments since 2004. All told, Lightstone has $12 billion in assets under management — including in industrial and commercial real estate.

As such, even if multifamily rentals don’t appeal to you, Lightstone could still serve you well as an investment vehicle for other real estate verticals.

Get started today with Lightstone DIRECT and invest alongside experienced professionals with skin in the game.

Take stock of your wealth

Gold and real estate are just two options for hedging your finances. The beauty of today’s investment landscape is it offers endless choices — from stocks and bonds to real estate, commodities and cryptocurrency.

While the sheer number of options might be dizzying, leaning into that variety could actually be the way out of financial risk. Sometimes, that even means doing it the old-fashioned way and dipping your toes into the stock market.

And lately, Dalio seems to agree.

In fact, despite his gloomy forecasts about the U.S., he has recently doubled down on American stocks, with Bridgewater betting heavily on AI companies in Q4 2025. According to a recent 13F filing, the firm added $695 million in Nvidia stock, $487 million in Alphabet, $395 million in Microsoft and $388 million in Amazon stock (8).

But with so many moving parts, you might not find it so easy to replicate Dalio’s strategy. It can simply be too difficult to see how your portfolio is performing or how much risk you’re carrying.

That’s why a unified view of net worth is essential, especially for investors with a diverse mix of assets. The more clearly you understand your total wealth and exposure, the better equipped you are to protect it and take it to the next level.

Because everyone wants to be at the top — but that doesn’t mean they can take in the whole view on their own.

Even the best need advisors.

Getting a view from the top

And so, if you’re looking to get to the top but don’t have an advisor yet, you could consider working with the tax experts and professional advisors at Range.

Range offers white-glove financial services to high-income households, which often have their own unique needs.

For example, once your equity enters an elite ballpark, one of the biggest financial pain points can be asset under management (AUM) fees. These fees mean that portfolio managers take a percentage of the value, typically between 0.5% and 2%, of your managed assets — so their fees scale with your wealth.

Range offers 0% AUM fees for advisory services and a flat-fee structure so that you can preserve more of your wealth. What’s more, they also offer an all-in-one solution for everything from alternative asset management to taxes — all of which is informed by modern AI solutions but backed by a team of certified financial professionals.

And the best part? You can book a complimentary demo to see if Range can meet your comprehensive financial needs.