The Harry Potter Galleon-to-Sickle 17:1 exchange rate hides a real arbitrage loophole
mgostIH · x · 2026-10-15
A viral post explains a non-magical Harry Potter loophole: the wizarding world fixes 17 Sickles (silver) = 1 Galleon (gold), but real-world gold-silver ratios fluctuate — 16:1 before 1900 (close to 17:1) vs 45:1 through much of the 20th century. Melting Galleons and selling the gold when gold is favored, then buying silver, would be pure arbitrage. Fans note Yudkowsky explained exactly this in his HP fanfic (HPMOR), and the thread is making the rounds again.
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