When you think about buying gold coins – the first place that comes to your mind is probably the local jeweler, but there are a lot more options than that at your disposal, if you want to buy gold coins.
In this post I am going to look at some of those options.
1. Buy gold coins at the bank: A lot of Indian banks sell gold coins these days. The benefit of buying gold coins from a reputed bank is that you have a lot more peace of mind, as far as the quality of the gold coins go. The disadvantage of buying gold from a bank is that they normally charge a premium on the gold coins, and you might be paying extra than what you would have otherwise paid at a jeweler. Another disadvantage is that normally banks don’t buy back gold from you. If you buy gold from a reputed jeweler, then in most cases they will buy it back from you.
2. Buy gold coins at the post office: This might come as a surprise to some of you, and it certainly surprised me, but it is true that the Indian Post Office sells gold coins. They too charge a premium on the gold coins they sell, but it seems that it is less than that charged by the bank. I am not sure about this though, and it is best to check this point yourself. Like banks, the Post Office will not buy the gold back from you, and only a few post offices are allowed to sell gold coins, so this option might not even be practical for you.
3. Buy gold coins online: I saw at least a couple of websites that were selling gold coins online, and that seemed to be legitimate. I am not linking to them because I couldn’t read any reviews on them, and do not know any one who has bought gold coins online in India. Further, when I checked the price of a 2 gram gold coin on their website and compared it with the gold coins SBI is selling, – I found that the online store is charging a higher price. The online store was asking Rs. 3998 for a 2 gram 99% purity gold coin, whereas the price I saw at SBI was Rs. 3,760. This doesn’t make much sense to me, and personally, I would rather go to a bank and buy gold coins, rather than pay extra to an online retailer to buy gold coins.
4. Buy gold coins from nation wide retailers like Tanishq: You can go to a reputed nation-wide jeweler like Tanishq, and can buy gold coins or bars from them. This offers you peace of mind because they have a strong reputation, and their good distributions means that this will be a convenient option for many of you.
5. Buy gold coins from your local jeweler: Most Indians will have a family jeweler, and if they sell gold coins or bars, then you might just find that this is the cheapest option. Furthermore, they will be willing to buy – back the gold coins as well, so that is an added benefit of buying from them.
These were five options that I could think of where you could buy gold coins in India, and I’d like to hear if there are any options that you know of and I missed out on.
I am a regular customer of Gold Coins/Bars from MMTC,one of the largest importer of Gold in India. The only limiting point is that MMTC does not have sales outlets other than Metros. Their rates are also quite attractive.
How about selling the gold coins? Have you tried that, and do they buy it back from you?
thank u for all, i am getting idea about purchase gold coins
THANKS
You may want to be also aware of the difference in Gold purity in 24 Karat.
I just checked out the MNC Bullion , which is relatively lower in price, but realized they offer 99.9 , while the prices where you might find higher would be is 99.99 purity. Well i guess that makes the Banks and MNC bullion on a level playing field.
Here are today’s prices from different Banks and MNC Bullion:
This is 99.9
MNC Bullion : Rs. 124387 for 50 gms
Corp Bank : Rs. 121024 for 50 gms + Taxes
HDFC : Rs. 136178 for 50 gms (Mudra gold. not sure whatz the difference)
SBI : Rs. 124500 for 50 gms (not sure about what purity they are offering)
Gng to check with GRT Jwellers and Tanishq to know their quotes. Watch out
Thanks for the input Venkat – higher purity is good, but the issue with the sale makes me think it’s simply better to buy a gold ETF. Not knowing how much they will deduct at the time of buying from you, and then creating all kind of hassles on top of that. It’s just too discouraging.
gold invest is loss better to invest in bank term depost
PURITY OF GOLD IS IMPORTANT!!!
Hi all ! I had been looking into the discussions for quite some time. All appear very interesting. However, it also appears that some bloggers, althought might be aware of some finer aspects of Gold and Investment in Gold, do not intend to provide fuller details of the information. May I add somethin here.
As quite a bit of discussion is on Coins, I am rstricting myself to the same.
I could not notice any ‘informative/expert’ blogger writing anything about the purity of Gold.
The ’24 Carat’ Gold is available in 3 Purities, if not more, 995 Purity; 999 Purity and 9999 Purity.
E-Glod that is being discussed by Mr. Jain or the Caratlane that is being suggested by Mr. Sandeep both belong to 995 Purity Gold. Which actually is NOT 24 Carat Gold.
Though 100% pure gold is highly difficult to achieve, the highest purity that is avaialble is 9999 Purity i.e. 99.99% pure.
Thus, actually speaking 24 Carat Gold means 9999 Purity.
Today on 22-06-2011, MMTC’s Selling Price for a 10g 9999 Purity Gold Coin is Rs.24,835.00 in Mumbai [actually checked] and the Price of a 995 Purity Gold Coin at http://www.Caratlane.com is Rs. 24,015.00 and at the NSEL the price of 10g 995 purity E-Gold is 23,520.00 as displayed on their respective websites. Tanishq is selling the 10g Coin of 9999 purity today at 26,306.00 .
So in my opinion the Best Investement would be to buy physical gold of 9999 purity [AND NOT JUST 24-Carat] from MMTC. Readers may make their research by visiting 2 or 3 showrooms/banks/outlets on the same day and then share with the readers for the benefit of all and not to make this blog for their own benefit.
Regards to all.
Sudhir, Thanks for your comment; just curious to know how this affects selling price? Do companies like Tanishq deduct less money while buying back higher purity gold?
Thanks for reading my views!
Actually I am only buying at this point in time and have not actually collecteted any info about selling and details thereon. Right now MMTC does not buy back the gold coins. But as I am taking the exercise now for buying and sharing tha info, I shall certainly share when I go and sell my investements/possessions. So can not comment or reply the query now.
However, with my contributed infor above, if some readers can add better inouts for buying or selling for better returns, it would benefit larger populace.
I checked with the Spot Exchange, but the whole process appears to be too complex and therefore difficult.
Thanks Sudhir.
I asked about selling because that’s where people are facing issues. So, just wanted to see if you have that figured out or not. Thank you for your comment.
I have bought a gold coin at http://www.caratlane.com/gold-coins recently. Looks like a professional site. They don’t buy back but you can always exchange your coins with jewellery at 100% value anytime. They also have a Lowest price guarantee policy where they will re-imburse you with the difference if you are able to find a lower price in the market.
Thanks Sandeep, have you already received the coin? Any feedback on how long they take to deliver, and if you plan to get the purity tested or anything else like that?
I have received the coin. Took about 3 days for delivery.
Thanks Sandeep.
BTW Tanishq besides being very expensive also does not declare the premium it charges on the coin of various denomination. All the sales person has a printout of making charges etc but if told to give a copy they say it is a Policy decision. AVOID TANISHQ for me
I prefer TBZ any time
What about the Reliance gold coin? Any one has any experience with Reliance ? Is it trust worthy option?
The main question there is whether they buy it back from the customer because that’s when people face problems. I don’t know if customers can sell it back to them but if they can’t then they will face some of the same problems they face when they go to sell a bank gold coin to a jewelery shop.
Jai Mata Di
i know about a company which offer’s 24 c gold coin with 99.9 % pureity in gold it muthoot finance.
i think muthoot is a good option to purchase gold coin.
kapil
I have purchased 24k gold coins of 8 grams from Manappuram jewellers . They charged me Rs.151 +2% VAT additionally. Is that fair enough. How far is Karat meter reliable.
Sir,
Thank you for the information.Now I have got some idea for buying gold.
Appreciate your comment.
Considering the problems in buying / selling physical gold, the e-option is obviously better. But which is a better option? E-gold or Gold ETF?
Gold ETFs have been around for much longer, and Benchmark Gold BEES has got good volumes and low cost. It’s understood how this functions and at present I’d personally go for ETFs rather than E-Series.
HEY can u tell me more about ETFs. I am rather new to this..
and also can ETFs be delivered like E-series of MCX?
No, they can’t be delivered like MCX.
The category on ETFs have a lot of info that can get you started on understanding them. Here is the link.
http://www.onemint.com/category/etf/
In my opinion both option of investment in Gold is better and it is true that Gold ETF has been for a while and whereas E-Gold/E-Silver has just come into limelight in last 6-8 months.
However looking to the volumes that E-Gold and E-Silver is generating in the Exchange, I see a definate shift in people’s investment perception and personally I feel that E-Gold / E-Silver are better products than GOLD ETF.
Hi,
I am a Perth Mint (Australia) Distributor of Gold and Silver coins/bullion.
I am trying to locate a person or business who would be interested in importing pure Australia gold/silver bullion for investment into India.
I can find such a business. They all seem to be jewllers etc.
Surely there is a market for gold and silver investment in India?
If anyone can point me in the right direction I would appreciated it.
Cheers
In my opinion, there is huge market for Gold & Silver Bullion, which must have now understood after reading the above comments.
Yes, Jewellers are the main marketers, but there are various other agencies who imports bullion for Indian market.
Please send me the full details about your products, weight, marking and purity and let me try to help you in locating some buyers. Our email id is richvikenterprises@gmail.com
Regards
Vijay Jain
There is surely a great market in india. But people here mostly dont trust in foreign mints and most importantly there are not too many realible sources here in india that buy or sell foreign mints coin.
Actually i m interested in silver more than gold and as i am a student can spend much money on physical . just some pocket money…
But anyways looking for perthmint coins u can email me at
gitansharora@gmail.com
THANKS
Thanks for the information, I am really interested to know more about E gold . Please tell me more, does investing in E gold means extra income tax payment . I always believed MMTC gold coins are safest bet , as they are believed to buy it back.
Dear Harmeen,
Thanks for your interest in E-Gold. You may just need to open a new DEMAT account for METALS only. You can open with any DP who is registered with NSEL.
Once you have opened the demat, you can let me know your contact details, and we can contact you. Else you can contact us richvikenterprises@gmail.com . We can arrange for buy and sell for your E-gold. You can also buy E-silver, which in my opinion is a better product, return wise, for investment. In the last two weeks the price has gone from 44000 to 46000. The investment is also lower. I would also suggest to buy E-copper for medium term profit.
As far as E-Gold or E-Silver is concern, there is still ambiguity to taxation, but be be safe, it is treated as investment in Physical metal and accordingly taxed as LT > 3 years and ST< 3 years.
Anyway who is anyway interested in Short Term investment in Gold and Silver.
Harmeen – here is a post about NSEL and you can view the post and comments to learn more about this option.
http://www.onemint.com/2011/01/13/e-gold-and-e-silver-from-nsel/
Besides E-gold & E-silver you can soon invest in Platinum. NSEL has reported tremendous growth in turnover of both E-Silver and E- Gold, exceeding all expectation. Even E-Copper has registered very high growth.
Thanks ALL, for sharing valuable information & knowledge. Very Useful. Cheers!
Thank you for your comment Asif.
Hi Manshu,
PLS help me in getting the clarity about Gold ETF and E gold and to whom to approach, as i am very new in the market and have no clue regarding gold investment.
Shilpa – for gold ETFs you don’t have to approach anyone other than your regular share broker or online trading account like ICICI DIrect or HDFC securities or anything. Have you ever bought shares and do you have an account with any of these companies?
Hi Manshu,
I have never bought any shares but i do not have any account with these companies. Can you help me out with the procedure for the same.
Hi Shilpa,
What you need is a Demat and a Share trading account to get started to invest in shares, or if you are only interested in gold and not shares in general then there are gold mutual funds that give you that option also.
For Demat / Trading you can contact someone like ICICI Direct, HDFC Securities or any other bank of your choice, or for MF you can contact the fund house directly like Kotak.
I think anyone out here really interested to invest – Longterm or Short terms in GOLD or SILVER should look at investment through E-Gold and E-Silver Route.
In earlier days, people use to make Jewellery and utensils for not only their use but also for future safeguard against inflation and other perils. Now the educated class do not see much of such usages and as such it has become more of an investment avenue and opportunity.
I have two reason for my arguments:-
1) The buying and selling price of GOLD/SILVER COINS are fluctuating and many fakes are there in the market.
2) Coins of Ganeshji, Laxmi ji become a show pcs which cannot be sold, when required, for religious beliefs.
3) With the changing fashion in the Jewellery industry, the same has become outdated in no time, and the resale value on selling. after deduction of making charges and impurity is quite questionable.
Therefore, suggest that in the long run, investment in GOLD & SILVER through Electronic route will be much better.
Anyone looking for buying GOLD & SILVER in ELECTRONIC DEMAT form can write to me.
Hi Vijay,
I am planning to invest in Gold but not able to make a decision that should i go for physical gold or for e gold.
Kindly let me know whether e gold and gold etf are the same thing, also let me know with how much minimum amount i can start investing in gold.
After going through the trail conversation i am more confused.
Hi,
Am interested to buy gold for investments and recently started exploring the market.
My Findings:
Banks charge a high premium for 24 Carat Gold coins/bar, but whereas my local jeweller has the same bank sealed gold coin of 24 carat on which he is charging 9% premium (as per RBI directives 9% is allowed) +1% ie 10% which i found quite reasonable compared to banks whose preiums are very high .
Buyback would be at the prevailing rate of 24 carat gold on the day of sale.
That means what you pay on Gold coin is the 10% premium rest is the return which you get back on the investment.
Also the Gold ETF about which i have read in this site only if sold after 1 year then Long Term capital Gains LTCG would be applicable which is again 10%
Hence i was trying to compare the two options in which Gold ETF seems better as for the same 10% cost you get the Gold and you dont have to pay the locker fee and storage tension .
You get the benefit of investment in Gold without actual physical possession and tension of safeguarding the same.
Please let me know your Views on the understanding.
Why not look at the opportunity of buying Gold and Silver in Electronic Demat Form. It is Safe. The price are quoted on the exchange website. You can buy or sell anytime. The exchange is open from 10Am to 11pm, No storage charges, just your Demat a/c which is also with NSDL ( a GOVT C0). No making charges, No Purity losses.
There is NO ETF for Silver. Silver has given a return of 60% in last 6 months. Industrial use has gone up and so has price.
You or anyone who need to buy or invest in Gold and Silver can contact me with their requirements. The minimum buy for Gold is 1Gm and for Silver 100 Gm.
You do not have this possibility of small investment anywhere. You can have a SIP done as well to buy in a fixed lot, every day,week or month as per desire
Once you have accumulated enough qty, you can exchange for Physical Gold or Silver.
Mentality of Indians is to buy physical gold no one would like to go for E Gold funda.
They will go to the merchant and made ornaments.
In India Gold is a long term investment.
Ultimately the customer has to be cheated by the merchants so better to go to earn more profit from the price to cut down the cheating ratio.