Tallano gold

{{Short description|Conspiracy theory in the Philippines}}

Tallano gold refers to a set of interrelated conspiracy theories and internet scams{{Cite journal |last=Bautista |first=Victor Felipe |date=2018 |title=The Pervert's Guide to Historical Revisionism: Traversing the Marcos Fantasy |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/45171930 |journal=Philippine Studies: Historical & Ethnographic Viewpoints |volume=66 |issue=3 |pages=273–300 |issn=2244-1093}} which claim that before Spain colonized the Philippines, the archipelago and surrounding territories were ruled by a certain Tagean Tallano family, that the family owned a vast amount of gold, and that former president Ferdinand Marcos obtained his family's unexplained wealth by receiving some of the Tallano gold as payment for the legal services he allegedly provided to the Tallano family.{{Cite news |last=Tan |first=Lara |date=19 January 2022 |title=Ka Leody says 'Tallano gold' myth meant to dupe Filipinos as Marcos camp denies knowledge |work=CNN Philippines |url=https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2022/1/19/Tallano-gold-Maharlika-Marcos-Leody.html |url-status=dead |access-date=10 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220127081944/https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2022/1/19/Tallano-gold-Maharlika-Marcos-Leody.html |archive-date=2022-01-27}}{{cite news |last1=Gonzales |first1=Cathrine |title='Walang ginto': Bongbong Marcos seeks closure on Tallano gold myth |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1550323/walang-ginto-bongbong-marcos-says-on-familys-gold |access-date=10 February 2022 |work=Inquirer.net |date=5 February 2022}}{{cite news |last1=Patag |first1=Kristine Joy |title=Pressed on mythical 'Tallano Gold', Marcos spokesperson says he knows nothing |url=https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2022/01/18/2154698/pressed-mythical-tallano-gold-marcos-spokesperson-says-he-knows-nothing |access-date=10 February 2022 |work=Philstar.com |date=18 January 2022}} Offshoots of the conspiracy theories include tales that the country's national hero José Rizal survived his execution, that the gold reserves were used to fund the Vatican, or that the gold was instrumental in starting the World Bank.{{Cn|date=May 2024}}

A related conspiracy theory is that the Tallano clan has provided {{convert|400,000|t|sp=us}} of gold as commission to former President Ferdinand Marcos who became the "sole owner" of such.{{cite news|url=https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/fact-check/no-tallano-gold-stored-in-bsp/|title=FACT CHECK: No Tallano gold stored in BSP|date=January 4, 2023|accessdate=May 28, 2024|website=Rappler.com}} The gold bars supposedly fell under the custody of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the country's central bank.{{Cn|date=May 2024}}

During the 2022 Philippine presidential election, the myth of the Tallano gold was circulated by social media pages supporting Bongbong Marcos, son of Ferdinand. In his presidential campaign, the younger Marcos shrugged off such claims, remarking in an interview held on March 15, 2022, with One News, that he has not seen a single gold bar in "his entire life." The BSP also released a statement that it has no record of it keeping such Tallano gold bars.{{cite news |title=Vera Files Fact Check: No tons of 'Tallano gold' allegedly owned by Marcoses in BSP storage |url=https://verafiles.org/articles/vera-files-fact-check-no-tons-of-tallano-gold-allegedly-owned-by-marcoses-in-bsp-storage |access-date=4 June 2022 |work=Vera Files |date=29 May 2022}}