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Why choose Segregated Vault Storage?
In the following article we will expand upon the segregated
gold vault and silver vault options we offer:
- What is it?
- Safety
- Insurance
- Cost Effective
- Fiat Currency Denominated Storage Fees
- Direct Ownership
- ETF Traders vs. Vault Investors
- Ease of Liquidity
- International Delivery Options
What is Segregated Vault Storage?
Segregate – (v) to
separate or set apart from others of the general mass, to isolate or divide.
Segregated Vault
Storage – (n) type of vault account where one’s holdings are
separate, excluded, and apart from others.
In a segregated vault storage account the metal purchased or
held within the account is separated from all other client and dealer account
holdings.
Legal title is not transferred, and the vault or precious
metals program has no ability to change or use the holdings unless
specifically stated in the storage agreement.
Clients are assured they can always take delivery and/or audit
their metals without any risk of encountering foreign bars and/or coins.
Fully segregated vault storage is convenient for physical
silver and gold investors who want the ability to hedge against systematic,
geopolitical, and economic risks while maintaining the ability to securely
liquidate and/or take delivery of their holdings in the future.
Safety
Segregated vault storage with a private, fully insured
third-party custodian is regarded within the precious metals industry as the
safest option for gold and silver bullion storage.
With segregated vaulting, the client’s precious metals
are held separately, never comingled with other investor holdings. The
original metals a client purchases are the exact same metals sold upon an
account’s liquidation or when the client takes physical delivery.
While we strongly believe in having some physical silver and
gold close at hand in case of a currency collapse or financial crisis, there
are limits to how much bullion an investor may deem safe to store under his
or her own roof.
As this 21st century gold and silver bull market plays out, we
believe home robberies of bullion will become more pervasive as the prices
for gold and silver increase. Take for example this report from early 2011:
 
Insurance
All segregated vault storage options offered at GoldSilver.com
have third-party insurance plans of $50 million or more. Please see the respective
vault storage facility’s Proof of Insurance link for further details:
Please also take note that the Safe Deposit Boxes provided by
commercial banks are not FDIC insured or protected from losses as bank
deposits are.
Storing silver and gold bullion in a bank Safe Deposit Box is
not a safe, insured alternative for investors.
Cost Effective
Most investors are unaware of just how cheaply they can store
gold and or silver bullion in private, segregated vault storage accounts.
Take for instance the expensive management fees of some of the
most popular exchange traded funds (commonly referred to as ETFs) versus the
price of storing physical gold and silver bullion in fully insured,
segregated vaults where investors can directly and outright own said
safe-haven assets:
Example: $ 200,000 of Gold Bullion with a $ 1600.00 Gold Spot
Price*
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Gold ETF Vehicle
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Minimum Annual Fee
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Minimum Annual Cost
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GLD
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0.40 %
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$ 800.00
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IAU
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0.25 %
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$ 500.00
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SGOL
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0.39 %
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$ 780.00
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AGOL
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0.39 %
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$ 780.00
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PHYS
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0.35 %
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$ 700.00
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Example: $ 200,000 of Silver Bullion with a $ 30.00 Silver Spot
Price*
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Silver ETF Vehicle
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Minimum Annual Fee
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Minimum Annual Cost
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SLV
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0.50 %
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$ 1000.00
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SIVR
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0.45 %
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$ 900.00
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PSLV
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0.45 %
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$ 900.00
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ZKB
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0.60 %
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$ 1200.00
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HUZ
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0.65 %
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$ 1300.00
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Fiat Currency-Denominated Storage Fees
Unlike many allocated and or digital gold vault storage
competitors, the segregated vault storage services GoldSilver.com offers are
all transparently charged in fiat paper currencies.
Many competing allocated and or digital vaults use complicated
fractional gold ounce or silver gram schemes to slowly siphon away
investors’ safe haven assets. We object to this method, as we believe
an investor’s gold and silver money should remain untouched, ounce for
ounce, and vault storage fees should be calculated and billed in depreciating
fiat paper currency notes such as dollars, euros, pounds, etc.
GoldSilver.com offers two transparent paper currency priced
models, one based on a per ounce price, the other based on a percentage of
overall account’s fiat currency value.
As the paper currency prices of silver and gold further
increase, the vault storage pricing models GoldSilver.com offers should
certainly help to keep investor’s vault storage fees competitive and
cost efficient.
Direct Ownership
Gold and silver bullion are rare assets which investors can
own outright with extremely limited counterparty risks. Since physical
bullion can never become worthless, outstanding investor risks are theft,
seizure, and or trustee fraud.
We believe serious investors in gold and silver should always
retain a portion of their holdings close at hand, in a safe but easily
accessible location. The larger an investment one makes in precious metals,
the more important physical diversification of one’s storage holdings
becomes.
The golden rule of precious metals vaulting is to make certain
invested bullion is owned outright and unencumbered. Stored precious metals
should never be held on any company’s books.
GoldSilver.com offers two options of segregated vault storage
accounts: (1) ownership by sub-account under a master / sub-account agreement
or (2) direct autonomy under a customer-to-vault storage facility agreement.
Accounts are titled in the investor or entity’s name,
assuring direct ownership of holdings. Secure, efficient physical delivery
and/or account liquidation a few mouse clicks away.
ETF Traders vs. Vault Investors
A gold ETF and or silver exchange traded fund (ETFs) does not
offer investors the benefits or protections of physical silver and gold
bullion ownership. ETFs offer very little protection for investors seeking
financial safety.
Most gold and silver ETFs do not allow redemptions or physical
delivery of gold and or silver holdings. The ETF prospectuses that do allow
physical redemptions or fund share for physical bullion swaps typically have
minimum volume requirements that are next to impossible to meet for most
mainstream investors.
With segregated vault storage holdings, the average gold or
silver investor can take physical delivery of their gold or silver holdings
either domestically or internationally in the more than 50 countries to which
GoldSilver.com currently delivers.
ETFs do not offer returns over the future spot price of gold
and or silver; instead, they attempt to track the paper spot price and can
potentially fail to track price altogether. In contrast, physical owners of
silver and gold bullion can reap large sellback premiums in the event of
current and future physical investment-grade silver and gold supply
shortages.
One of the main benefits of physical gold and silver ownership
is the opportunity to hold safe haven tangible assets outside of the
financial institutions while enjoying minimal counter-party risks. Silver and
gold ETFs are subject to bank trustees, brokerage accounts, banking laws, and
financial market regulations. In contrast, we offer customers the advantage
of undisclosed, private and segregated vault storage accounts. Vault storage
accounts also remain open even on bank holidays or in the event of financial
failures.
Silver and gold bullion provides 24-hour liquidity, while
silver or gold ETFs can only be exchanged during market trading hours.
ETFs may be a workable option for day-traders, but for gold
and silver investors seeking safe haven asset protection, we will continue to
provide secure, private vault storage options around the globe.
As physical silver and gold bullion investors ourselves, we
feel there is no comparison in terms of risks, annual costs, upside
potential, and liquidity.
Ease of Liquidity
With precious metals held in a third-party vault, liquidation is
a simple phone call and or click away. Investors can avoid the risk and
inconvenience of moving heavy, expensive boxes in public. The process of
receiving funds from sub-account liquidations is quick and easy, as the
metal’s title ownership and vault location is shifted quickly.
At GoldSilver.com sub-account liquidation is an automated
process. Simply log into your GoldSilver.com account, click on the Sellback
tab and follow the simple directions. There are no shipping fees involved
with sub-account liquidations, as the metals are simply moved from the
investor’s segregated vault storage section to the segregated inventory
of GoldSilver.com.
Liquidations from the private vault storage accounts we offer
our customers are automated as well.
Simply log into your GoldSilver.com account, click on the
Sellback tab and follow the simple directions. Upon liquidation, the private
vault storage facility will receive automated instructions of where to ship
the liquidated precious metals. Investors with private vault storage accounts
will be responsible for all shipping and handling costs incurred from their
respective private vault storage facilities.
International Delivery Options
GoldSilver.com can currently ship to over 50 countries
worldwide, making it easy and efficient for investors to take physical
delivery of their vault storage holdings from many parts of the globe. Our
accessible, simple and secure vault storing options help empower investors to
maintain easy physical, locational, and geopolitical diversification of their
bullion holdings.
In Summary
Here at GoldSilver.com, we have dedicated our vault storing
service options around our client’s best interest. We invest in gold
and silver and hold segregated vault storage accounts in the very same facilities
that we in turn offer our customers.
We want to empower gold and silver investors to make vault
storage choices best suited for their objectives and investment needs.
Please do not hesitate to contact our staff if you have
questions or would like to begin storing your precious metals safely and
securely.
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