Is there a place for bullion in the portfolio of the 21st century investor? After all, in this digital age, cryptocurrency often seizes the headlines as the digital investment of the future for those in the know. Can gold, silver and other bullion compete with cryptocurrency or the stock market – or are they a hopelessly outdated investment choice?
Bullion: the ultimate long-term investment
Unlike cryptocurrency, bullion, whether gold, silver, platinum or rhodium, is always in physical form, usually bars or coins. You can handle it, feel the weight and understand where and in what form your wealth is invested.
It’s been this way for thousands of years. Ancient rulers across the world displayed their wealth and status in gold and silver. If they had access to a source of precious metals, as did the kings of ancient Egypt and China, they were the envy of their neighbouring rulers.
That’s one of the reasons why for hundreds of years the monetary systems of many countries had currencies that were directly linked to gold – the gold standard. Currencies, including cryptocurrency, are not wealth in themselves – they are recognised means of exchange. Bullion is tangible wealth.
But what do precious metals have to offer the investor?
Many people believe that there’s no longer a need for something like gold to be linked to modern “fiat” currencies. Why do people even buy it any more? The simple answer is to take a look at any graph charting the history of gold prices for the last 40 years.
While gold is not immune from fluctuation in price, it maintains its value. On the whole, an ounce of gold represents the same amount of wealth as time passes. Watch what happens when the markets are volatile – it’s easy to see that gold and other bullion becomes a popular haven for investors.
And some of the biggest critics of bullion that you’ll encounter no doubt have some investments in gold and other precious metals too. No balanced portfolio should be without it.
How can an investor safely secure valuable physical bullion?
The digital age means it’s never been easier to safely purchase bullion and you don’t need to worry about storing it either. Companies such as Indigo Precious Metals offer secure storage for bullion that is allocated to you, and to no other investor, in segregated vaulting. You can guarantee that your bullion will be safely secured.
