Frequently Asked Questions

What is Gilded?

Gilded is a leading financial technology company that combines the newest digital technology with the oldest form of currency to address the limitations of today’s financial system and fiat currencies. With a simple, secure, and cost-effective platform, the Gilded offering enables users to buy, store and sell physical gold, providing the benefits of cash without the drawbacks. While operating with the highest levels of safety and security of blockchain technology, Gilded is not a cryptocurrency or a stablecoin. Instead, we provide fully paid-for, direct ownership of physical gold. 

Gilded’s mission is to make physical gold digital, mobile and usable. We serve high net worth clients directly and through partnered financial institutions as well as  family offices, asset managers, corporations, and sovereign entities by making it simple to acquire, hold, and use physical gold. Our growing team of professionals has considerable experience in both the digital and financial worlds, having held leadership roles in all facets of software development, product design, commodity trading, operations, compliance and risk management for major technology companies, investment banks and governing organizations. We have harnessed this experience and considerable talent to create the Gilded offering.

You can meet the Gilded team at here.

What is the Gilded offering?

Gilded offers a modern solution that makes it easy to buy, store and sell gold. Depending on your location, you can buy gold at the current live price, at the LBMA fixing or both, and store it in insured non-bank Brinks vaults.  Your purchase is recorded on the Linux Foundation Hyperledger blockchain. We provide a digital receipt that documents your gold ownership. At all times, you can see your gold holdings, transaction history, account value, and other information on the Gilded platform. 

The gold available through the Gilded offering is always London Bullion Market Association approved “Good Delivery” gold of .9999 purity.  This means your gold will have been produced by accredited LBMA refiners in Switzerland who meet the highly detailed specifications of the LBMA’s Good Delivery List Rules, which govern such matters as the purity, weight, and safe handling of refined gold bars.  Moreover, these refiners must also adhere to LBMA’s Responsible Sourcing Programme, designed to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and human rights abuses.  The LBMA is recognized as the global leader in setting standards for the world’s gold markets.

The Gilded Platform also allows you to sell your gold easily.  The sell feature works much like the buy feature, permitting you to readily sell some or all of your gold at either the current live price or at the LBMA fixing.  You may also use our bar swap functionality to simultaneously sell and buy gold bars to reduce market price risk, yet allow you to consolidate holdings, move to a different vault, or take advantage of tax opportunities.

The Gilded offering is available to individuals directly and through partner financial institutions and entities such as family offices, asset managers, corporations, and sovereign entities. We encourage you to contact our sales team to set up a direct conversation to learn more about the Gilded offering and how it can fit your needs.

What are the security and trust features of the Gilded offering?

When you buy gold through the Gilded offering, the gold is your property.  We have worked with some of the world’s top law firms to ensure that the Gilded offering provides our customers a safe and secure structure for their gold ownership.  The Gilded offering can be distinguished from other gold investment options, such as ETFs and gold-company stocks, where you do not possess direct ownership and instead share the risks of the issuing entity.

As to the practical aspects of the Gilded offering, your gold is stored in insured non-bank Brinks vaults.  Brinks brings more than 150 years of experience as the market leader in providing the highest levels of security, service, and accountability to the safeguarding of valuables.  Your gold is also verified by Bureau Veritas, a nearly two-century-old global firm devoted to establishing trust amongst individuals, public authorities, and companies in all matters, including those between businesses and their customers. Your gold is also audited by Armanino LLP, a top 25 US accounting firm that is affiliated with Moore Global, one of the world’s major accounting and consulting companies.  In addition, your purchases are recorded on our private permissioned blockchain, which is based on the Linux Foundation’s Hyperledger Fabric – this record, plus your digital receipt with its identifying information, provide clear documentation of your ownership.  In turn, ownership can always be confirmed on the Gilded platform.

What quality of gold is offered through the Gilded offering, and is it responsibly sourced?

The gold available through the Gilded Platform is always London Bullion Market Association approved “Good Delivery” gold of .9999 purity.  This means your gold will have been produced by accredited LBMA refiners in Switzerland who meet the highly detailed specifications of the LBMA’s Good Delivery List Rules, which govern such matters as the purity, weight, and safe handling of the refined gold bars.  Moreover, these refiners must also adhere to the LBMA’s Responsible Sourcing Programme, designed to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and human rights abuses. 

More information on these topics is available at http://www.lbma.org.uk/faqs#panel4 and at https://www.lbma.org.uk/responsible-sourcing.

What is the Gilded KYC/AML process?

KYC/AML is shorthand for “Know Your Customer/Anti-Money Laundering” and refers to a set of internationally and nationally developed practices designed both to verify the identity, suitability, and risks involved with onboarding customers and to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing, and financial crime.  Gilded takes its KYC/AML responsibilities very seriously, and it complies with KYC/AML requirements in all jurisdictions where our products and services are available. In addition to Gilded’s internal procedures, we utilize the services of multiple KYC/AML providers, including Moody’s/Regulatory DataCorp, Au10TIX, and Veri5Digital, to ensure the thorough and ongoing review and vetting of customers. 

In certain circumstances, we may report to the relevant authorities those applicants whose information raises material money laundering, terrorist financing, or other concerns.

Our KYC/AML processes are ongoing with respect to our customers.  For country-specific questions, please contact onboarding@gildedco.com.

How does Gilded Gold compare to other investment choices?

Gilded is not offering a cryptocurrency or stablecoin. We provide fully paid for, direct ownership, title, and reliable property rights of physical gold secured in a vault and digitally recorded on a private permissioned blockchain. This differs from an ETF in which the investor does not receive direct ownership of the asset and, in most cases, cannot receive by delivery. This also differs from bank deposits which serve as an IOU from the financial institution to return the deposit made plus any interest at the deposit holder’s request. When you buy gold through the Gilded platform, it is your property, resides outside the financial system, and, by common standards, is free from counterparty risk.

For more information about how Gilded Gold compares to other investment choices, click here.

Why Gilded Gold?

Gilded leverages blockchain and the latest technology to modernize the analog process of buying and selling gold – making it digital, mobile, and usable. We are working on ways to utilize your physical gold, converting it to a mobile and usable digital asset. For example, allowing you to pledge, collateralize, and earn with your investment. 

To learn more about our offering, please contact our sales team at sales@gildedco.com. 

Who is your team of professionals?

Our team of experts hails from leading Wall Street and technology firms with an average of 25 years of experience in the gold, precious metals, commodities, foreign exchange, financial markets, blockchain, technology, and wealth management. We all share a passion for bringing the world’s earliest form of currency into the digital world.

You can meet the Gilded team here.

How are buys and sells priced through the Gilded offering?

Depending on your location, the Gilded platform may offer two options for buying and selling gold. The first is by placing an order to buy or sell gold at the next LBMA fixing price. Alternatively, you can buy or sell at the current gold spot price plus a Gilded mark-up.

What are the additional fees charged through the Gilded offering?

There are two types of fees associated with the Gilded offering.  First are the Gilded fees assessed on any buy or sell transaction, charged as a percentage of the currency amount associated with your transaction at the time of completion. Second are the storage fees, calculated and accrued daily based on total gold holdings and invoiced at the end of each month. In certain circumstances, for one-off services, there may be additional fees.  

If you want to learn more about our fee structure, please contact our Sales team at sales@gildedco.com.

Who regulates Gilded?

As a global company, Gilded and its affiliates are subject to country-by-country requirements imposed by governments and regulators. Gilded complies with all regulations in the jurisdictions we do business in and has retained multiple global and local law firms for counsel with respect to these requirements.

Is the Gilded offering a cryptocurrency?

No, the Gilded offering is not a cryptocurrency or stablecoin.  The Gilded offering allows customers to obtain direct ownership of physical gold, one of the oldest currencies in the world.  Our customers’ physical gold is stored in insured non-bank Brinks vaults, and its value is dependent on movements in the world’s long-established gold markets. 

What are the eligibility requirements for opening a Gilded account?

The Gilded offering is available in multiple countries to individuals 18 years or older and entities that meet all applicable onboarding and KYC/AML requirements set by regulators and Gilded.  For country-specific questions, please contact onboarding@gildedco.com.

What are the details of the KYC/AML process?

Gilded’s KYC/AML process is designed to prevent such activities as money laundering, terrorist financing, and financial crime by gathering, analyzing, and evaluating personal information about our customers and their transactions. In certain circumstances, we may report to the relevant authorities those applicants whose information raises material money laundering, terrorist financing, or other concerns.

Will I receive a certificate or other proof of purchase when I buy gold through Gilded?

Yes, each purchase of gold made through the Gilded offering is electronically reported on your receipt, and available on the Gilded platform.  Your Gilded receipt provides ownership information about your transaction and that same ownership information can be obtained by logging in to the Gilded platform. 

In addition, every gold purchase is permanently recorded on the Linux Foundation Hyperledger blockchain. 

Finally, you can see your gold holding balances and other related account information at any time, globally, through the Gilded platform.

What is blockchain?

Blockchain is a database or ledger system of recording information in a way that makes it difficult, some say impossible, to change, hack, or cheat because it uses a highly secure encryption to store data. A blockchain’s most notable benefit is its ability to maintain a reliable, secure, and decentralized record of transactions. This technology guarantees the ultimate security of a record of data. Because of this attribute, there’s no need for a trusted third party in the equation—trust is built into the technology.

Gilded leverages blockchain slightly differently. Our blockchain is based on IBM’s Hyperledger Fabric platform, where our blockchain is private and permissioned. It has many attributes of a public blockchain, such as historical and reliable records; however, it has centralized control where access can be provided to auditors and other control functions. 

One significant difference is how our data is protected and users are vetted on the Gilded Blockchain. No personal information is stored on the blockchain. In addition, all users are anonymous to each other. Each user is subject to Gilded’s KYC and AML controls to gain access to the network; this significantly reduces the risk of nefarious activities. 

What is the purity of gold offered by Gilded, and who certifies it?

The gold available through the Gilded offering is Swiss-refined; London Bullion Market Association approved “Good Delivery Bars”. This means your gold will have been produced by accredited LBMA refiners who meet the highly detailed specifications of the LBMA’s Good Delivery List Rules, which govern such matters as the purity, weight, and safe handling of the refined gold bars.  Moreover, these refiners must also adhere to LBMA’s Responsible Sourcing Programme, which is designed to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and human rights abuses.  The LBMA is recognized as the global leader in setting standards for the world’s gold markets.

In addition, the quality, and LBMA and refiner bona fides of all gold purchased through the Gilded offering are verified by Bureau Veritas, the nearly two-century-old global firm devoted to establishing trust amongst individuals, public authorities, and companies in all matters, including those between businesses and their customers.

What refineries produce the gold available through the Gilded Offering?

Gold on the Gilded platform is sourced from Swiss Refiners, which produce the highest bullion quality for the global market.