Some of the refineries (and there are a whole lot of gold & silver bar refineries out there) represented by Gold Dealers that have the best reputation in this business of making gold bars are (I will increase this list as time permits):
Australian bullion dealer ABC Bullion - http://www.ausbullion.com.au/ ABC Bullion is the sole importer of PAMP gold bars for the district of Au & Nz. They have achieved that position because of their ability to successfully represent PAMP in a manner that supports their direction and integrity in offering their products. Here is a picture of a PAMP gold & silver bars
Engelhard - An Australian based refinery which manufacturers some of the highest grade gold & silver bars in the world was puchased back in 2006, by BASF. Nevertheless the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) still lists several former Engelhard refineries on its approved gold & silver refiners list … a prestigious credential. Here is an Engelhard gold bar
Credit Suisse - http://goldsilver.com/buy-online/credit-suisse-10-oz-gold-bar/ Gold Silver is just one of many suppliers that represent the Credit Suisse gold & silver products.
Johnson Matthey - http://about.ag/JohnsonMattheySilverBars.htm Here is one sample of the JM gold bar
NTR - http://www.ntrmetals.com/precious-metals-uk.php & http://www.ntrmetals.com/bullion-minting.php NTR Metals commercial customers have the option to call their London hedging desk during trading hours to lock in the then-current precious metal spot price before shipping or bringing their metal to one of their processing locations. This service gives their customers the opportunity to hedge against sudden market fluctuations. Their bullion trading desk continually monitors market conditions to detect even slight changes in supply and demand. This economic insight allows them to provide their clients with current market information. NTR Metals Market Maker™, their proprietary trading system, provides their bullion traders with the information they need to ensure timely and accurate execution of all transactions. Collectively, their knowledge, technology and experience help their customers minimize risk and maximize profits when trading precious metals bullion. They have come up with a very cool tube of 1oz ingots, 10 in a tube that makes inventorying small amounts of assayed gold an easy thing to do. All you need now is a bunch of money to buy them.
APMEX -
Sunshine Minting -
Royal Canadian Mint - It has been said more than once that the Royal Canadian Mint makes by far the best stamped Maple Leaf Coin on the market.
The Perth Mint - Comments by Eric deCarbonnel (blog address for Eric is at the end of these comments) The PMCP offers offshore storage of precious metals (gold and silver) at The Perth Mint's vaults in Western Australia. The Perth Mint has operated continuously from the same location for well over a century. The PMCP is the only government-guaranteed, precious metals program in the world. This unique precious metals storage program is fully owned and backed by the government of Western Australia and insured by Lloyds of London.
*** Your vaulting relationship with The Perth Mint is private, protected under the Gold Corporation Act 1987 and the Perth Mint Certificate Program's administrative procedures.
*** This is the world's only Government guaranteed precious metal accumulation program.
*** The Mint is operated by Gold Corporation that is wholly owned by the Government of Western Australia.
However, according to Eric the author of these comments, there appears to be a growing problem with The Perth Mint, Problem #1: PMCP is Paper Gold. After all, a certificate, by nature, is nothing more than a promise to the bearer. Owning a gold certificate is someone's promise to pay gold to you. According to James Turk, doing business with Perth Mint means you are a general creditor of Gold Corporation. For instance, in 2002, its financial statement showed that the Mint had approximately 4.5 times more debt than equity ($96.2 million of gold on hand against $234 million of liabilities). In 2006, the leverage ratio had increased above 18. For details feel free to read Is the Perth Mint telling me the whole truth? There are numerous warnings from others, such as Jim Sinclair and Jason Hommel, regarding the Perth Mint selling paper promises.
Although comments from the Perth mint say - The PMCP issues Certificates, detailing your metal holding, in your name and identified by a Certificate number. The PMCP is also the only Government Guaranteed certificate program in the world, making it one of the safest ways to own precious metals. Its administration is not unnecessarily burdensome and complies with Australia’s Anti Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing legislation. PMCP clients have legal title to precious metals stored in either an Allocated, Pool Allocated or Unallocated accounts. The PMCP facilities are especially suitable for private investors seeking confidentiality and flexibility and a safe haven for their precious metal assets in an uncertain world.
•Precious metal storage on an Allocated, Pool Allocated or Unallocated basis. The availability of the storage type is at the sole discretion of the Mint.
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•Purchase and sale of precious metal holdings at internationally competitive prices. Two day settlement of sale proceeds.
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•Execution of standing and stop loss orders.
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•Arrangement of precious metal transport, insurance, and release from safe custody.
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•Provision of transaction or holding statements on request.
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•Conversion of Unallocated and Pool Allocated metal to Allocated Coins or Bullion upon payment of the current fabrication charges.
Eric continues - The Perth Mint Problem #2: Gold Confiscation - All countries have a confiscation risk on the basis that we are dealing with politicians. In our view, Australia has a relatively high risk of gold confiscation theft because Australian law already has a mechanism in place to require delivery of gold to the Reserve Bank of Au stralia (RBA). If you read Part IV of the Banking Act 1959 (the compilation was prepared on 7 July 2008, taking into account amendments up to Act No. 73 of 2008), you will notice the Governor-General may confiscate gold "for the protection of the currency or of the public credit of the Commonwealth". Section 41(1) says "A person shall not, except with the consent in writing of the Reserve Bank, take or send any gold out of Australia". Section 42(1) says "a person who has any gold in the person's possession or under the person's control shall deliver the gold to the Reserve Bank, or as prescribed, within one month after the gold comes into the person's possession or under the person's control". Section 43 says "all gold delivered in pursuance of section 42 shall thereupon vest in the Reserve Bank absolutely, free from any mortgage, charge, lien, trust or other interest in or affecting the gold". Section 44 says "the amount to be paid for any gold delivered in pursuance of section 42 shall be an amount determined in accordance with such price as is fixed and published by the Reserve Bank". Section 45(1) says "a person shall not sell or otherwise dispose of gold to a person other than the Reserve Bank or a person authorized in writing by the Reserve Bank to purchase gold; and a person, other than the Reserve Bank or a person so authorized, shall not buy or otherwise obtain gold from any person."
The Perth Mint cannot default on its allocated gold without breaking the law. Gold Corporation and the Western Australia government can default on the Perth Mint's UNallocated bullion certificates by using Perth Mint's "force majeure" clause. Read all the fine print written on the certificate, including: "The Perth Mint will not be liable or responsible for delivery delays due to causes beyond its control."
Perth Mint Problem #3: A Socialist Government - The Australian Government is running big deficits, and who knows what the next elected government may do towards the Perth Mint. Runaway inflation will be a worldwide problem, and the need to stabilize the currency will become a priority. Will the government decide to bring Part IV into force to address the issue of runaway inflation? At iGolder, we anticipate an inflationary economic depression comparable in severity and scope to the Great Depression of the 1930s. We created iGolder to provide stability and prevent the division of labor from shrinking - causing mass unemployment. Political stability is very important to us, therefore it becomes strategic to store our gold in a country having respect for private property (gold ownership). Politicians, craving for power, may promise confiscating gold to resolve the financial crisis. Of course, stealing the gold won't solve the problem, however it will probably buy a few votes to get elected.
"Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch." (Benjamin Franklin). The scenario of a politician promising to confiscate the gold belonging to foreigners cannot be discarded.
Our Conclusion Regarding the Perth Mint Certificate Program
Given all the problems listed above, iGolder does not consider prudent to purchase Perth Mint Certificates for storing your gold. We welcome Australian businesses, as long as they are not linked to the Government. No government should be trusted. If you are relying on a government guarantee, you may be relying upon a hollow promise. We encourage you to do your own due diligence before purchasing Perth Mint Certificates. (see more about Eric's comments at http://www.marketskeptics.com/2009/02/warning-about-perth-mint-gold.html My reaction: The whole point of owning gold is safety. Investing in gold in an unsafe way negates this purpose. With the potential of the four problems with Perth Mint looming on the horizon, it's difficult to come up with any other conclusion than this - Conclusion: Avoid Perth Mint gold certificates, especially for unallocated gold (allocated gold is much safer, but still risky). There are much better and safer alternatives for investing in gold. The perth gold bar is solid, the Perth gold certificate is in question.
Now, for The largest known GOLD BAR in the world -
If you're into buying gold, perhaps the largest known gold bar in the world, here's something to think about. The world's largest gold bar stands at 250 kg (551 lb), measuring 45.5 cm × 22.5 cm × 17 cm (equal to 17403.75 cm³, or 17.9 in x 8.9 in x 6.7 in≈1062.04 in³). It was manufactured by the Mitsubishi Materials Corporation, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi. It went on display at the Toi gold mine on July 11, 2005. It was valued in 2005 at approximately $3,684,000 USD but since then has soared to a whopping 2012 rate of $1,600oz is worth about $24.7mil not accounting for the premium associated with being the world's largest gold bar).
Now compare that to the worlds largest Gold Coin - The Perth Mint has unveiled the biggest and most valuable new coin in the world! Weighing a massive one tonne of 99.99% pure gold, this monumental coin embodies the pinnacle of ingenuity and innovation! The colossal coin measures nearly 80cms wide and more than 12cms deep. As the showpiece of the Australian Kangaroo Gold Bullion Coin Program, its classic design by Dr Stuart Devlin AO CMG, goldsmith and jeweller to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, has featured on each annual 1 kilo release in the series for more than 20 years.
The one tonne masterpiece features a bounding red kangaroo surrounded by stylised rays of sunlight and bordered by the inscription AUSTRALIAN KANGAROO 1 TONNE 9999 GOLD and the year-date 2012.
Issued as Australian legal tender, the obverse of the coin features the Ian Rank-Broadley effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by the inscriptions ELIZABETH II, AUSTRALIA and the monetary denomination of 1 MILLION DOLLARS!
The popular Australian Kangaroo Gold Bullion Coin Program offers a stunning choice of gold bullion coins in a range of sizes, with various mintage limits and annual design changes.
So this coin was minted during 2012. Just when Perth began inventorying the gold to make this monstrosity is not stated. But its value at current rate is always known. The difference between when they accumulated their gold till today or tomorrow, when its value is claimed, less any costs to make, design & inventory the gold coin is called profit.
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