Even if gold remains legal, it’s likely to be useless for barter. “Got any batteries for trade?”
“Yeah, I got batteries. Got any sterile gauze? Our little girl got hurt during the riots.”
“No gauze, friend, but I’ll swap you this gold Krugerrand for all the batteries you have.”
“Gold? What do I need with gold? I need gauze for my little girl’s bandages. No, thanks.”
We had a friend who lived through a very serious hurricane in Florida. He told us the hot commodity to stock up on in a disaster is toilet paper. In a disaster, the stores are looted or closed and people quickly run out of toilet paper. He said people can live without a lot of items for a long time, but toilet paper was something people really don’t want to be without. It was like gold; everyone bartered for it.
I think it would be sensible to stock up on TP, gauze, duct tape, batteries, plastic sheeting, nails, plywood and plastic jugs. You would be able to easily trade these items for what you need.
Some people will still want gold in a crisis, but not as many who will want TP!