Precious metals are rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical elements of high economic value. Chemically, the precious metals tend to be less reactive than most elements. They are usually ductile and have a high lustre. Historically, precious metals were important as currency but are now regarded mainly as investment and industrial raw materials. Gold, silver, platinum, and palladium each have an ISO 4217 currency code.
The United States Mint is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury responsible for producing coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce, as well as controlling the movement of bullion. It does not produce paper money; that responsibility belongs to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. The first United States Mint was created in Philadelphia in 1792, and soon joined by other centers, whose coins were identified by their own mint marks. There are currently four active coin-producing mints: Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, and West Point.
Bullion is non-ferrous metal that has been refined to a high standard of elemental purity. The term is ordinarily applied to bulk metal used in the production of coins and especially to precious metals such as gold and silver. It comes from the Anglo-Norman term for a melting-house where metal was refined, and earlier from French bouillon, "boiling". Although precious metal bullion is no longer used to make coins for general circulation, it continues to be held as an investment with a reputation for stability in periods of economic uncertainty. To assess the purity of gold bullion, the centuries-old technique of fire assay is still employed, together with modern spectroscopic instrumentation, to accurately determine its quality.
A bullion coin is a coin struck from refined precious metal (bullion) and kept as a store of value or an investment rather than used in day-to-day commerce. A bullion coin is distinguished by an explicit statement of weight and fineness on the coin; this is because the weight and composition of coins intended for legal tender is specified in the coinage laws of the issuing nation, and therefore there is no need for an explicit statement on the coins themselves.
The Perth Mint is Australia's official bullion mint and wholly owned by the Government of Western Australia. Established on 20 June 1899, two years before Australia's Federation in 1901, the Perth Mint was the last of three Australian colonial branches of the United Kingdom's Royal Mint intended to refine gold from the gold rushes and to mint gold sovereigns and half-sovereigns for the British Empire. Along with the Royal Australian Mint, which produces coins of the Australian dollar for circulation, the Perth Mint is the older of Australia's two mints issuing coins that are legal tender.
This glossary of numismatics is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to numismatics and coin collecting, as well as sub-fields and related disciplines, with concise explanations for the beginner or professional.
e-Bullion was an Internet-based digital gold currency founded by Jim and Pamela Fayed of Moorpark, California, as part of their Goldfinger Coin & Bullion group of companies. The company was incorporated in 2000 and launched on July 4, 2001. Similar to competing systems such as e-gold, e-Bullion allowed for the instant transfer of gold and silver between user accounts. e-Bullion was a registered legal corporate entity of Panama.
Silver may be used as an investment like other precious metals. It has been regarded as a form of money and store of value for more than 4,000 years, although it lost its role as legal tender in developed countries when the use of the silver standard came to a final end in 1935. Some countries mint bullion and collector coins, however, such as the American Silver Eagle with nominal face values. In 2009, the main demand for silver was for industrial applications (40%), jewellery, bullion coins, and exchange-traded products. In 2011, the global silver reserves amounted to 530,000 tonnes.
A self-directed individual retirement account is an individual retirement account (IRA) which allows alternative investments for retirement savings. Some examples of these alternative investments are real estate, private mortgages, private company stock, oil and gas limited partnerships, precious metals, digital assets, horses and livestock, and intellectual property. The increased investment options available in self-directed IRAs prompted the SEC to issue a public notice in 2011 due an increased risk of fraud in alternative assets.
Envela Corporation, incorporated on September 17, 1965, is a holding company owning subsidiaries engaged in various business activities with a focus on recommerce. Envela's segments include retail stores, e-commerce, de-manufacturing, recycling, IT asset disposition (ITAD), and reverse logistics. Envela Corporation is divided into two sectors: DGSE, LLC and ECHG.
A metallurgical assay is a compositional analysis of an ore, metal, or alloy, usually performed in order to test for purity or quality.
Goldline, LLC was a retail seller of gold and silver coins, and other precious metals for investors and collectors. Goldline traced its formation to a Deak & Co. subsidiary created in 1960, a firm that in the late 1970s was the largest storefront gold retailer and later went into bankruptcy in the 1980s. The company was later bought and sold several times in the ensuing years. The company sold its assets to A-Mark Precious Metals, Inc. in August 2017.
Michael R. Fuljenz is a numismatist, author, and businessman. He is currently the president of Universal Coin & Bullion, a precious metals trading company located in Beaumont, Texas.
Barry Stuppler is an American coin dealer and former President of the American Numismatic Association (ANA). In 2003, he served on the California State Quarter Commission that created the California State Quarter.
A gold coin is a coin that is made mostly or entirely of gold. Most gold coins minted since 1800 are 90–92% gold, while most of today's gold bullion coins are pure gold, such as the Britannia, Canadian Maple Leaf, and American Buffalo. Alloyed gold coins, like the American Gold Eagle and South African Krugerrand, are typically 91.7% gold by weight, with the remainder being silver and copper.
A gold IRA or precious metals IRA is an Individual Retirement Account in which physical gold or other approved precious metals are held in custody for the benefit of the IRA account owner. It functions the same as a regular IRA, only instead of holding paper assets, it holds physical bullion coins or bars. Precious metals IRAs are usually self-directed IRAs, a type of IRA where the custodian allows more diverse investments to be held in the account.
Delaware Depository is a privately held precious metals custody and distribution center founded in 1999. Located in Wilmington, Delaware, Delaware Depository provides precious metals bullion custody, safekeeping, and distribution services for IRA custodians, financial institutions, broker-dealers, refiners, and individual investors. Customers have the option of storing bullion in either Wilmington, DE, Orange County, CA, or internationally, in Canada or Switzerland.
APMEX is one of the largest e-commerce retailers in the United States, providing a two-way market for buying and selling Precious Metals in the United States. It has a selection of over 20,000 products that include Gold, Silver, Platinum, Palladium, numismatics and semi-numismatics. APMEX sells products for investing and collecting.
The Texas Bullion Depository is a bullion depository based in Texas in the United States. It was the first state-administered depository to be established in the United States; previous depositories were either at federal level or private companies. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar announced it was open for business on June 6, 2018.
Chard (1964) Ltd, operating as Chard Coin and Bullion Dealer, is a long-standing coin and bullion dealer based in Blackpool, UK. They deal in everything from ancient coins through to modern-day issues and even bullion. Originally a numismatic company, they have grown over recent years into the bullion market offering gold, silver, platinum and palladium products to an international customer base.
