Physical or Paper Gold? Why?

[faaty]

Guys I have read all your comments but still not satisfied. You all say that paper gold is not gold itself, just a promise; so having physical gold is more trusting even there is a possibility of theft.

Maybe I understand something different when saying paper gold.

Gold account at banks such as HSBC, BNP Paribas or ICBC is really less safer than keeping the gold at home?? And even if these accounts are guaranteed by the government up to $30k in each account?

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[AT101ET]

Guys I have read all your comments but still not satisfied. You all say that paper gold is not gold itself, just a promise; so having physical gold is more trusting even there is a possibility of theft.

Maybe I understand something different when saying paper gold.

Gold account at banks such as HSBC, BNP Paribas or ICBC is really less safer than keeping the gold at home?? And even if these accounts are guaranteed by the government up to $30k in each account?

Exactly.
Although banks are often a 'safe' bet and are insured up to a certain amount, they are far from flawless. Take Lehman Brothers or Northern Rock as examples. Following the financial crisis they went under.
If you have the gold safely in your possession then no matter what happens to the bank, you still have that gold.
Say someone had $50k in gold in an account held by a bank. If the account is only insured up to $30k and the bank goes bust, then ultimately he'll lose $20k as he's only insured for $30k/$50k held by the bank.
Had he kept the $50k of gold in person then he'd still have the $50k of gold whatever happens (not accounting for loss/theft).

[n691309]

If you don't touch the gold then you can't count that you already hold or own 100% the gold because something outside can happen. You may think that it is safer to hold the paper gold because it is less risky since you don't hold it physically but if you lose this letter you may lose the gold ??

[webtricks]

I better recommend you a line item between paper and physical gold i.e. having physical gold and deposit it with bank. In this way, you would have around 1-2% yearly profits on your gold and can liquidate again in Gold anytime with increased amount. In my country (India), government has recently launched scheme related to as said above and scheme is great success!

[joae1975]

I'll say it again.  Physical gold has been real money for thousands of years.  Paper gold/money has been around since paper was invented a couple hundred years ago, its new in historical terms.  Physical gold will always be money.  No government or person can change that.  Paper can be diluted and destroyed.  Promises of redemption can be broken.  Only real physical gold will survive any paper money crisis.

[bit1]

I'll say it again.  Physical gold has been real money for thousands of years.  Paper gold/money has been around since paper was invented a couple hundred years ago, its new in historical terms.  Physical gold will always be money.  No government or person can change that.  Paper can be diluted and destroyed.  Promises of redemption can be broken.  Only real physical gold will survive any paper money crisis.

In fact I think you are absolutely right , paper is perhaps the most unsafe way to store value, since it's just a promise, no one guarantees that the one who makes the promise still exists at the moment of wanting to make the exchange in the future,  can also be altered due to humidity, breakage, oversights, running the risk that when presenting it to exchange it can not be accepted given the conditions of the document, definitely not a good choice.

[mindrust]

As long as you know how to hide the gold, physical is the best because you actually own it. Think about this way: If you can't lick it, you don't own it. That piece of paper may not mean shit especially when your country is being ruled by a dictator. I wouldn't trust papers if i were you. For you, bitcoin is the most safest choice. If not, go for the physical gold coins.

Check this website it gives you great hints about where to hide your gold:
https://goldsilver.com/blog/how-to-hide-your-gold-and-silver/

Bear in mind, thieves also read those articles so you need to be smarter and more creative but those articles will give you a good starting point.

[geopolisch]

Some people says physical gold is more important, I should have physical instead of paper gold. But I dont understand why.

I trade easily in paper gold, spread is low so I lose less while trading. Banking system is powerful in my country, Turkey.

Physical gold can be stolen easily, I dont prefer having gold in my home, it is so dangerous imo, thieves are everywhere in my hood

What do you think?

It is fully dependent on your purposes. If you are only looking for trading purposes then ETF kind of paper gold is more appropriate for you rather than risking with physical gold. If you are able to safeguard your storage and able to manage properly your physical gold for buying and selling purposes then there would be no differences between physical gold and paper gold.

Based on your purposes and your capability, just choose the right one.

[faaty]

guys you say that paper gold is invested just 1-2 hundred years ago but you invest crypto currency which is invented just a few years ago. how do you explain that?

I understand that none of you have bitcoin in online wallets. all of you should have stored your cryptowealth offline

[faaty]

Some people says physical gold is more important, I should have physical instead of paper gold. But I dont understand why.

I trade easily in paper gold, spread is low so I lose less while trading. Banking system is powerful in my country, Turkey.

Physical gold can be stolen easily, I dont prefer having gold in my home, it is so dangerous imo, thieves are everywhere in my hood

What do you think?

It is fully dependent on your purposes. If you are only looking for trading purposes then ETF kind of paper gold is more appropriate for you rather than risking with physical gold.

that's right. I trade gold and unlikely keep it more than a few months.

[Raimonn]

Some people says physical gold is more important, I should have physical instead of paper gold. But I dont understand why.

I trade easily in paper gold, spread is low so I lose less while trading. Banking system is powerful in my country, Turkey.

Physical gold can be stolen easily, I dont prefer having gold in my home, it is so dangerous imo, thieves are everywhere in my hood

What do you think?

It is fully dependent on your purposes. If you are only looking for trading purposes then ETF kind of paper gold is more appropriate for you rather than risking with physical gold.

that's right. I trade gold and unlikely keep it more than a few months.

If you use to trade gold, in this case its better the paper gold. But most users thing about gold as an store of value to keep safe for large time and in this case physical gold is better.

[Mometaskers]

Though I like shiny coins as much as a Meowth  I'd be a bit uncomfortable storing gold at home unless I can have a safe made. I understand the doubts with banks though. After all no one knows what could happen to banks. Heck, we can't even be sure if the gov't would go keep its promise of giving you the insured money should bank fail.

I'll say it again.  Physical gold has been real money for thousands of years.  Paper gold/money has been around since paper was invented a couple hundred years ago, its new in historical terms.  Physical gold will always be money.  No government or person can change that.  Paper can be diluted and destroyed.  Promises of redemption can be broken.  Only real physical gold will survive any paper money crisis.

This. I watched somewhere that Europeans have been using some sort of notes so they don't have to carry gold during their travels but it really goes down to trust. As for the Chinese, they started using paper money mainly because they start to run out of metals. When large amounts of silver started flowing from the Americas, traded to China by the Spanish, they started to use silver for coinage again.

[digaran]

You know nothing about physical gold as it has heat absorption capability and can block all sorts of radiations and where there is treasure usually snakes are around is because gold can warm their blood, expensive electronics mostly are priced high for gold used in making them.
And of course when there is a war paper gold worth zero but from the dawn of civilization gold has won wars for nations.
Thousands of years fake religions used people's faith as a tool to get more gold from them, and btw gold is fused in less than a second when a star explodes, in fact all the elements heavier than helium are produced in fusion process in matter of seconds and also earth's core is 30% pure gold.

[bit1]

guys you say that paper gold is invested just 1-2 hundred years ago but you invest crypto currency which is invented just a few years ago. how do you explain that?

I understand that none of you have bitcoin in online wallets. all of you should have stored your cryptowealth offline

I understand your point of view, sounds paradoxical and maybe it is, what happens is that when a thing is disruptive, you do not have much time to stay thinking about this, similar to years or so,of  that way many people see a lot of potential more than paper gold, and is verified in the result of the last years, but yes the risk will always exist, on the contrary when you see that the value of paper over the years sometimes loses its full value sometimes you realize that it is perhaps the worst option  and guides some to other more attractive ways of investment. Maybe that's why some prefer to invest in crypto, I guess.

[markj113]

Comex is currently leveraged 542:1 on gold.

That means there are another 541 people who think they own the same oz of gold you do.

Soon or later this will end in tears.


If you want to trade in gold but not take physical delivery you could opt for an allocated account with a trusted company such as Perth Mint, Bullionvault or Goldline.  They all have independant audits so the gold they claim they hold for you is acutally there.

[joae1975]

A good solution to this is Gold Money.  I buy a little with every paycheck.  1% fee in and out.  Can't beat it.

http://goldmoney.com/r/Eo9lgo

[carlerha]

I better recommend you a line item between paper and physical gold i.e. having physical gold and deposit it with bank. In this way, you would have around 1-2% yearly profits on your gold and can liquidate again in Gold anytime with increased amount. In my country (India), government has recently launched scheme related to as said above and scheme is great success!

here we have safe in our banks where one can put their gold for saving but you will service charges on it. and their services charges too more therefore it become more expensive to save gong and then keep it in bank because of security issues. therefore i will always recommend investment and not saving in any form.

[machinek20]

I think it is easier to do trading with paper gold, but somehow i prefer physical gold where i can touch and keep in any place i want, i feel more secure with physical gold, modern people now prefer storing their gold in paper gold because it is more efficient

[wxa7115]

Some people says physical gold is more important, I should have physical instead of paper gold. But I dont understand why.

I trade easily in paper gold, spread is low so I lose less while trading. Banking system is powerful in my country, Turkey.

Physical gold can be stolen easily, I dont prefer having gold in my home, it is so dangerous imo, thieves are everywhere in my hood

What do you think?

the key part is what i made bold.
as others have said when you are using paper gold, it is a promise not gold itself. i agree that it is easier and more convenient but can you be absolutely sure that the promise they made to you will never be broken? if so trade away and have fun.

in any case both methods have their own risks.
for example buying physical gold is not only makes you susceptible to thievery but also it is always the risk of buying fake gold (e.g. there are some fake gold coins looking just like the real ones flying around in my country).

This we know promises are broken every time when it comes to governments and business besides the persons holding hold do so in the hopes gold skyrockets and if it does there is not going to be enough gold to fulfill the promises the business gave to all those investors, so the ones holding physical gold will earn while those holding paper will lose everything.

[The Sceptical Chymist]

If you're playing the gold market, I would think paper gold would be good enough.  You can get in and out quickly, and you don't have to worry about storing it, as you mentioned.  You're basically laying bets on the gold price, so if that's your plan you don't need to hold it.  Only goldbugs and hard-money enthusiasts insist on having physical metal.  I've heard that so many times, it's ridiculous.

Why does it matter what we think, anyway?  Are you happy with 'paper gold'?  If so, just stick with it and don't listen to anyone here.  Including me.