What Kind of Gold Cannot Be Confiscated?
Gold confiscation is a key concern of many gold investors and often discussed among bullion dealers who thrive off of people’s distrust in government.
Gold coins may be less vulnerable to confiscation. Rare numismatic coins could be considered collectibles rather than investments and provide some degree of protection from confiscation.
Coins
Gold bars and coins have long been sought as safe haven assets, offering protection from financial instability in times of uncertainty. But with confiscation a real risk, some are looking for solutions to safeguard their investments against this possibility.
Gold coins with numismatic value would be difficult to confiscate. Such collectibles, like old U.S. gold coins from before 1933, are prized due to their historical value and graded by independent coin grading companies.
As it’s essential that all transactions exceeding $10,000 be reported, government regulations do not mandate reporting on purchases paid for with cash amounts over $10,000 made with personal checks or bankwires as opposed to cashier’s checks and money market accounts – this makes purchasing coins that use bankwires an effective form of protection from confiscation; one key reason why it’s wiser to store gold away from banks in an independent vault that won’t be targeted by authorities.
Bars
Gold confiscation might seem farfetched, but it’s an increasing worry among those worried about unsustainable debt levels and excessive government spending. Furthermore, those anticipating bank failure or economic collapse might fear it too.
Governments often take advantage of currency devaluations to seize people’s savings, including gold. While stocks, bonds and savings accounts might also fall prey, gold tends to be preferred due to its rarity compared to its other instruments such as stocks. Instead of asking citizens directly, governments often “request” that citizens surrender it instead.
Gold confiscations has historically occurred in advanced economies and lasted a long time. While the Roosevelt Executive Order exempted numismatic coins from confiscation, it’s possible that laws could change and apply confiscation to all forms of bullion in future. Therefore, it’s advisable to own a selection of bullion bars – most European coins promoted by telemarketers are actually bullion coins rather than collectible ones.
Bullion
Most individuals who purchase gold as protection against systemic failure, either financial or governmental, prefer bullion in the form of bars and coins to protect themselves against systemic collapse. Bullion rarely becomes subject to confiscation – historically speaking, governments usually target assets which can easily be turned into cash (such as stocks and bonds) or are affected by currency devaluation ( such as real estate or property), never jewelry.
Myth: Certain gold coins are safe from confiscation is commonly spread by telemarketers selling old European coins with 30-30% markups over their gold content. Unfortunately, confiscating most currencies today are no longer gold-backed and the market for physical gold has become extremely liquid.
Store your gold abroad to make it harder for any government to seize it and further separate yourself from banks that may collaborate in any government overreach.
Jewelry
Though the idea of government confiscating precious metals may seem ridiculous, it has happened enough times that those concerned about unsustainable debt levels, runaway central bank spending and money printing should take note.
FDR nationalized gold during the Great Depression; while this did not amount to confiscation per se, citizens who surrendered their gold were compensated voluntarily.
Governments that have confiscated assets in advanced economies tend to focus on confiscating coins and bars–they don’t touch jewelry! Therefore, we believe bullion-grade jewelry offers one of the best strategies against potential confiscations; its unique qualities would make an oppressive government difficult to target it as an asset class.
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