Investing in physical gold has become an increasingly common activity both for specialized investors and for people who are new to this activity. Something that we see every day at Degussa, the reference company in Europe in the commercialization of physical investment gold, which is why we have selected ten basic terms that those who are taking their first steps in this type of investment should familiarize themselves with:
- Investment physical gold . European regulations grant the category of physical investment gold to ingots or bars of 2 or more grams of a purity equal to or greater than 995 thousandths and coins with a purity greater than 900 thousandths.
- Popularly, any piece of this material that has been cast and molded is called a gold ingot . They come in a wide variety of weights and shapes. However, using a strict definition, the term ingot refers to pieces that have specific dimensions and weight, 12.4 kilograms (400 standard troy ounces, although they can range between 350 and 430 ounces), and a triangle shape without tip. These features are part of the Good Delivery standard . They are the ones that are stored by the central banks and whose transactions set the price of this precious metal in the markets.
- Bar . Pieces of gold of different weights and sizes that are smaller than standard bullion are called bars, making them more affordable for different types of investors. In addition, their divisibility provides them with greater liquidity when making exchanges. In Degussa they can be found with weights ranging between 1 gram and 1 kilo.
- Currency . Physical investment gold coins, apart from the characteristics outlined above, are minted by the mints of each country, have a different face value than their weight in gold and, among other information.To be considered physical investment gold, they must be included in the list of currencies that the European Union publishes annually.
- Law or purity . The law or purity refers to the amount of pure gold that each piece of this metal contains. For physical investment gold it is usually measured in thousandths and for jewelry in carats.
- Troy ounce . It is a unit of measurement commonly used to weigh precious metals. Equivalent to 31.1035 grams. In a kilo there are 32.1507466 troy ounces. It has its origin in the medieval British system of coins. In the case of physical investment gold, apart from pieces of this size, there is a wide variety of ingots or bars on the market. Thus, it is common to find them of 1 gram, 2.5 grams, 5 grams, 10 grams, 20 grams, 50 grams, 100 grams, 250 grams, 500 grams or 1 kilo.
- Numismatics . The term numismatics refers to the study and collecting of coins. Investment physical gold coins, those minted after 1800 that meet the characteristics detailed above, have a greater value due to their weight in gold than due to their numismatic characteristics, except in certain cases or with certain coins due to their rarity or special characteristics.
Apart from marketing physical investment gold bars and coins, at Degussa we offer the possibility of repurchasing investment products and other pieces of gold, yours or those of other manufacturers.
