If you own an unrefined gold bar and want to turn it into money, the usual buyer is a refinery. This guide explains what to expect. It describes common practice; each refinery sets its own terms, and Bargold can’t promise that any refinery will buy your bar, or at what price.
What a refinery will ask for
- Who you are. Refineries verify sellers under anti-money-laundering rules, much as we verify buyers.
- Where the gold came from. The certificate of origin, assay report, mining title and seller registration, and your invoice. Keep these papers with the bar.
- A minimum quantity. Many refineries only accept lots above a set weight, and a single small bar may fall below it.
How it’s priced
- The refinery assays the gold itself, often by melting and sampling. Its result may differ from the original assay report.
- It calculates the fine gold content (and sometimes silver) from the weight and its assay.
- It pays a percentage of the market value of that metal, and deducts refining, assay and handling charges.
What you receive will be less than the market value of the gold in the bar. Our selling price was above that value, because it includes our margin.
Before you buy
If you might want to sell later, ask a refinery about its minimums, charges and the documents it needs before you buy. Bargold doesn’t buy bars back.
Nothing in this guide is investment, tax or legal advice.