Good Delivery bars: Does it matter which type of bar I buy?
The precious metal experts at Gold & Co. recommend that you always buy a bar from a Good Delivery manufacturer. If you buy a Good Delivery bar, you are assured of a problem-free buyback.
What are Good Delivery bars?
Vienna is home to many companies that sell gold bars. Well-known names in the industry are Gold & Co, Ögussa, Philoro and the Austrian Mint. You can also buy gold bars from banks, some of which have their own minting.
Good Delivery bars are bars that are produced by LMBA-certified manufacturers. The LBMA (London Bullion Market Association) is an international association based in London, England, and comprises and represents the main players in the gold market and their customers. These include central banks and companies that primarily produce gold bars and silver bars. Furthermore, the association only awards the LBMA certificate to manufacturers who undergo strict controls and requirements. This guarantees the authenticity and purity of the bars, which is why you can sell these gold bars worldwide without any problems or deductions. Gold & Co. only offers silver and gold bars from Good Delivery productions (such as precious metals from the Austrian Mint or Argor Heraeus).
In Austria, only the Austrian Mint has this certificate, which is awarded by the LBMA (London Bullion Market Association) under strict controls and conditions.
In Switzerland it is Argor Heraeus, for example, and in Germany it is C. Hafner. Only those manufacturers certified by the LBMA are licensed to produce 400 ounce bars. The 400 ounce bars have an absolute weight of 12.5 kg and are traded internationally by governments, banks and major investors.
Good Delivery bars are generally accepted all over the world and are easily purchased by almost all banks and precious metal dealers. Weight and precious metal (gold or silver bars) are irrelevant. Bars from other manufacturers are not purchased by banks at all and are only purchased by precious metal dealers with high extra discounts. For gold bars from non-good-delivery manufacturers, you must therefore expect discounts of up to 15%.
1 kilogram of gold currently costs 80,310 euros on the stock exchange (fall 2024), so a price deduction of 15% makes a big difference. But how does this price difference come about? As already mentioned, non-good delivery products are only partially accepted worldwide or are purchased at a high discount. If you sell a non-certified precious metal, such as gold or silver, reputable precious metal dealers will have these precious metals melted down. This process is usually carried out by refineries. These are companies that separate or dissolve base metals or impurities from gold or silver. In the next step, the non-certified bars are cast into gold bars that are allowed to carry the Good Delivery Certificate. The price difference of up to 15% results from melting down and re-coining the bars.
Compare a 10 gram bar from a good-delivery manufacturer (e.g. Argor-Heraeus) and a 10 gram bar from a manufacturer without a good-delivery certificate (bar from an Austrian refinery). Both have a fineness of 999.99, there is no difference in terms of purity and quality - this lies solely in the acceptance by dealers.
Acceptance by dealers: The Argor-Heraeus bar is considered bankable - the Ögussa bar is not.
A list of all global manufacturers of Good Delivery bars can be found on the LBMA website.
Ögussa gold bars are also pure precious metal
Of course, gold bars from non-certified manufacturers also normally contain the stamped gold content. Just pay attention to the minimum fineness of 999.9, as there are also gold bars with a fineness of 995 or 999.0. You can usually resell uncertified gold at normal conditions where you bought it. Of course, please bear in mind the fluctuating price of gold.
Another tip: In vacation destinations, the same applies to investment gold as to expensive jewelry. Do NOT buy gold, even if the price may be tempting. Except for verifiable products from the local Good Delivery manufacturers (compare LBMA manufacturers). Various certificates for jewelry, gold and silver bars and coins have mostly proven to be worthless or low-value counterfeits.
If you want to invest your money in gold and silver bars, you should buy Good Delivery bars! We are often asked whether it is better to invest in gold bars, silver bars, gold coins or silver coins. Our advisory service in our branches in Vienna will be happy to help you decide which form of investment is right for you.
You can find more tips and information under "Investing money correctly in gold" and "The LBMA Gold Fixing". If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at any time or drop by one of our branches in the 9th or 22nd district. We look forward to hearing from you!
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