Perth Mint Certificate Unallocated Silver

Buy Bullion Vaulted with The Perth Mint Certificate Program

What are Perth Mint Certificates?

With no storage fees or fabrication costs on unallocated holdings, The Perth Mint Certificate Program is one of the most cost-effective ways to own precious metals. Anywhere.

The Perth Mint Certificate Program (PMCP) is operated by the Perth Mint of Western Australia and is the only government-guaranteed certificate program in the world.

The Mint is wholly owned by the Government of Western Australia. The PMCP allows UK investors, savers, and pension funds to own investment grade silver, as well as gold bullion. 

The Perth Mint is the trading name of Gold Corporation. It is the successor organisation of the Royal Mint’s Perth branch that was founded in 1899. The Perth Mint Certificate Program is fully guaranteed by the Government of Western Australia. The Government has received a AA+ rating from international rating agencies. 

GoldCore was appointed as an authorised dealer for PMCP in 2005, and we are one of a select few authorised dealers of The Mint’s certificates, in the world.

We offer Perth Mint Certificates as we believe they offer one of the best ways to own silver and gold cost-effectively and securely. 

How Much Do Perth Mint Silver Certificates Cost?

The cost of Perth Mint Unallocated Silver Certificates is based on three factors:

1. The Silver Spot Price. This is the price of Silver that is available for delivery in two days that is quoted by The Perth Mint. It is based on the global spot price of silver as stated by bullion banks and quoted by market data providers such as Bloomberg and Reuters.
2. The Silver Spot Premium. The Silver Spot premium is a percentage charge that is added to the Silver Spot Price. It is offered based on the amount of metal being bought.
3. The Silver Certificate Fee: The Certificate Fee is a $50 charge that is added to each order to cover the costs of printing and sending a signed Certificate of ownership to you, the client. Each Certificate is recorded with the client’s name, the Mint's name, details of the holding and is signed by an official of the Mint. It represents a receipt of your silver that is kept in the client’s name. In the age of digital assets, such tangibility becomes very valuable insurance given the risks from cyber criminals, online account and internet shutdowns and other cyber risks.

Please note, we do not offer allocated Perth Mint silver certificates. We do offer allocated Perth Mint gold certificates, however they are not as popular as unallocated certificates due to the high storage and fabrication fees. 

How to Buy Perth Mint Certificates?

Buying Perth Mint Certificates is very easy. You will need to provide ID documents and fill in an application form.

1. Open an account,
2. Upload your identity documents,
3. Await your application form and when ready email it back to us. If you have any questions, you can call us at any time.

When you buy allocated or unallocated Silver through the PMCP, The Perth Mint issues a Precious Metal Certificate in your name, detailing the specific number of ounces of silver that you own and that is stored on your behalf in the Mint. Unallocated Silver clients have legal title to the silver stored in their account. Every certificate has a unique certificate number and is akin to a certificate of ownership.

The quantity of silver purchased will depend on the price per ounce of the metal and the amount that you have decided to invest. Perth Mint Certificates are highly liquid and can be sold through GoldCore.

Upon settlement of PMCP buy orders, The Perth Mint will send GoldCore a certificate confirming the quantity of Silver purchased. If you sell part of your PMCP holding, upon settlement, The Perth Mint will send GoldCore a new certificate confirming the quantity of silver remaining.

Unallocated and Allocated Silver is held as an asset on the balance sheet of the Mint, and the silver that has been sold to clients is recorded as a matching balance sheet liability. Therefore, the unallocated accounts are 100% backed by silver and the asset and liability are fully matched. Any credit or insolvency risk is highly unlikely given that The Perth Mint is owned by the Government of Western Australia.

In the Perth Mint Certificate Program, none of the bullion is leased or lent out to the market, short positions are not allowed, and The Perth Mint does not use financial derivatives on its silver. Perth Mint precious metals stored for clients are fully insured under its unique Government Guarantee.

The Perth Mint undertakes full quarterly inventory stocktakes using both internal and external auditors from major accounting firms in Australia. The audits are reviewed by the Auditor General of the State of Western Australia who is answerable to the State Parliament.

What is The History of The Perth Mint?

Gold and to a lesser extent silver have played a central role in the history and development of modern Australia. Likewise, The Perth Mint has played a central role in the history and development of Australia’s precious metals industry.

The history of precious metals in Australia centres on gold, more than silver.

Australia experienced three main waves of gold rushes in the 1800s. The first two were in the Eastern gold fields of New South Wales and Victoria in the early 1850s and resulted in mass migrations of gold prospectors to Sydney and Melbourne, respectively, and the rapid growth and development of these cities.

The third series of gold rushes occurred in Western Australia towards the end of the 1800s, most significantly at, Coolgardie in 1892 and Kalgoorie in 1893. Again, this led to large-scale migrations of miners to the region, and the growth and development of the coastal city of Perth. Coolgardie and Kalgoorie are situated between 550-600 km east of Perth.

During the 1800s, Australia had evolved as a series of colonies under British rule. Like the rest of the British Empire, the Australian colonies used gold sovereigns and half-sovereigns as circulating currency. Initially, the gold found in New South Wales and Victoria was shipped back to The Royal Mint in London to be converted into sovereigns and then returned to Australia.

When it was realized that local mints would be more cost-effective, The Royal Mint proceeded to open its first branch mint in Sydney in 1855. A second branch mint followed in Melbourne in 1872.

Likewise, following the gold discoveries in Western Australia, The Royal Mint opened its third branch mint in Perth in 1899. Miners from the western gold fields would deposit their precious metals, primarily gold but also silver, at the Perth Mint wherein it was minted into gold sovereigns. The sovereigns manufactured in Australia were not purely for domestic use and also circulated as currency through the British Empire as Britain was on a gold standard. Sovereigns produced by each of the three branch mints were differentiated by mint marks on the coins, S for Sydney, M for Melbourne and P for Perth.

In 1931, Britain abandoned “the gold standard”, and so the Australian Mints stopped making gold sovereigns. The Sydney Mint closed in 1926. Between 1899 and 1931, The Perth Mint created more than 106 million gold sovereigns and nearly 735,000 half-sovereigns. The Perth Mint then turned to make gold and silver bullion bars and during WWII and became involved in the production of Australian coins. Until 1984, the Mint manufactured much of Australia’s conventional coin currency. The Melbourne mint closed in 1972.

The Perth Mint stayed under Britain’s jurisdiction until July 1970, after which ownership transferred to the State Government of Western Australia. Then in 1987, the Mint’s parent company Gold Corporation was created by a State Act of Parliament.

The Mint was then empowered by the Commonwealth of Australia’s Department of the Treasury to mint and market gold and silver Australian legal tender coinage for the benefit of investors and collectors.

The Perth Mint is responsible for manufacturing and marketing most of Australia’s legal tender precious metal coins and is one of only a handful of world-renowned mints whose pure gold and silver legal tender coins are trusted without question. These coins include the world famous Australian Nugget silver coins, Australian Silver Koala coins, and Australian Silver Kookaburra coins which are sought after by bullion investors worldwide. Overall, the Perth Mint currently produces over 30 minted silver bars and coins in a range of weights and sizes.

The Mint and refinery also provide refining and other services to the silver industry and manufacture many coins and related numismatic items for investors and coin collectors.

In 2003, The Perth Mint opened a state-of-the-art 8,400 square meter manufacturing facility in 2003 next door to its original limestone building. Together, these two buildings represent more than 100 years of minting excellence in Western Australia.

How to Store Silver with The Perth Mint Certificate Program?

Many GoldCore clients prefer to own unallocated silver certificates with The Perth Mint as it is a very economical way to hold physical silver in your portfolio. It is a cost effective way to hold the precious metal because no storage or fabrication fees are incurred. 

When you own unallocated silver you are an owner in common with other unallocated clients. You will own an undivided interest in The Perth Mint’s pool of silver which is held in unsegregated storage on a fungible basis. Your silver will not be uniquely identified, rather you will own a specific amount of silver rather than a specific bar or coin. The Perth Mint may use that metal in its operations, subject to the terms and conditions of PMCP.  Because your silver may be used in The Perth Mint’s operations, you are not charged storage fees.