Selling gold coins in Switzerland
The most important points to bear in mind when selling gold coins
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Gold coins can be sold to other private individuals or to banks and precious metal dealers.
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Gold coins are sold at prices close to the gold price.
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The value of gold coins is determined by their weight and purity.
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Both historical gold coins and modern coins can be sold.
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Historical or rare coins may have a collector's value that is higher than the gold value.
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Collector coins are best sold at auction.
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The condition of the coin is of the utmost importance for collector coins.
Introduction to selling gold coins
Gold coins are suitable for savers and for collectors. The wide selection of different coins from all over the world in different price ranges makes them attractive to a wide variety of buyers. But at some point, even gold coins change hands. This article is intended to help anyone who owns a gold coin and wants to sell it.
What is a gold coin?
Not every flat piece of gold with pretty decorations is a gold coin. Coins are, by definition, small standardised metallic objects that can be used for payment and have a defined value.
Since the abolition of precious metal coins, money pieces that have been minted by the state and declared legal tender are considered coins. Before this time, a money piece did not have to be legally declared legal tender; its value was covered by the precious metal in the coin. At that time, however, only sovereigns were entitled to have coins made. Coins from states that no longer exist today are still considered coins.
Both the way they are made and their legal status as coins can be an advantage. Gold coins can often be imported tax-free into most countries without restrictions in terms of size, marking, manufacturer or fineness. This is not the case with many precious metal bars and other products. Since they are produced without serial numbers and in large quantities, the privacy of one's own cash flows can be better protected than with products that do have these characteristics. The year of minting on a coin is then an advantage if the country of origin is subject to sanctions one day. Usually, sanctions do not apply retroactively, making it easy to prove that a coin is not subject to sanctions.
The market also includes so-called medals, which are very similar to coins and may also be made of silver or gold. Unlike coins, however, these medals have never had the status of legal tender. Please read our article on coins, bars and medals.
Sell your gold coins on PreMeSec.ch!
Selling collector's coins or investment coins
Anyone who has bought a coin themselves knows its approximate value or at least knows where to look it up. If you have been given a coin as a gift or inherited it, you often lack this knowledge.
For the price, it is important whether it is an investment coin or a collector's coin. While the former are strongly based on the gold price and are only a few percent higher, collector's coins can be significantly more valuable depending on their rarity and state of preservation.
The selling price of bullion coins is determined by the
market price of gold. Bullion coins were made for savers who want to buy gold at a price close to the market price. To this end, they are produced in high numbers without expensive manufacturing techniques. For this reason, the premium on these coins is low. Today, many of these coins are offered in different weights, with 1 ounce, ½ ounce and 1/10 ounce being very common
| Coin | Country of origin |
|---|---|
| Krugerrand | South Africa |
| Maple Leaf | Canada |
| Vienna Philharmonic | Austria |
| Nugget Kangaroo | Australia |
| American Eagle | United States |
A small number of historical coins that are still available in large quantities can be counted among these coins.
The value of bullion coins like those described above is close to the price of gold. The price for 1 ounce, ½ ounce or 1/10 ounce gold can easily be found on the internet. In some cases, banks and dealers also publish lists with the prices of the individual coins.
While perfectly preserved specimens can be several percent above the gold price, scratched coins can be expected to command slightly lower prices. However, it is only in the rarest of cases that a coin needs to be melted down, which would justify a price below the gold price.
Determining the selling price of collector's coins
Coins that are particularly rare can develop a collector's value. Demand plays an important role in this. In the past, normal circulation coins or misstrikes that were rare became collector's items. Today, mints specifically mint coins in a limited edition and sometimes in particularly high quality to serve the collector's market. However, there is no guarantee that a coin produced for collectors will also be sought after and thus achieve a correspondingly higher value.
An example of a coin with a collector's value that was originally produced for normal payment transactions is the 100-franc gold Vreneli from Switzerland. Only 5,000 of this coin were produced, and after about 100 years, about 3,500 of them still exist.
A normal bullion coin that has developed collector's value is the Krugerrand, which was minted in the mid-1990s in only a very small edition.
To determine the status as a collector's item and the value of collector's coins, extensive research on the internet is advisable. Trustworthy dealers who specialise in collector's coins (numismatists) can be helpful here. Whereby a second or even a third opinion should always be sought.
The best partners to sell gold coins
Since a margin is always lost when trading gold coins at the bank or at the precious metal dealer, private buyers should always be considered as a lucrative option. Private buyers can be found on PreMeSec.ch. Here, gold coins can be traded at attractive conditions with other private individuals. It is definitely worth reading our article on how to trade precious metals securely on the internet.
Scrap gold dealers who distribute mailings in letterboxes often pay prices below the precious metal value, which is far too little. For this reason, you should avoid such buyers.
Frequently asked questions about selling gold coins
Should I sell my gold coin?
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Whether you should sell your gold coin depends on many factors, but mainly on the price. Many people do not know whether the price is optimal or whether they should wait a while. It is important to realise that you never catch the perfect moment to buy or sell assets. This also applies to gold.
If the value of the coin has increased since you bought or received it, there is no reason not to sell. However, if the price has fallen and you don't need the money right away, you can hold on to the coin for a few more years.
The future development of the gold price is difficult to predict. It depends heavily on the amount of money created, economic development, inflation and interest rate developments. Even experts often err in their predictions, so a decision to hold or sell gold based on an assumed price trend remains a matter of speculation.
Where can I sell gold coins?
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You can sell gold coins directly to other private individuals at PreMeSec.ch, Switzerland's first second-hand precious metal exchange. In addition, banks and precious metal dealers also buy common gold coins. Be careful with hawkers without their own premises.
How can I find out the value of my gold coin?
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The value of a gold coin depends on its weight. The fine weight, i.e. the weight of the pure gold in the coin, is usually stamped on it. If the coin says ‘1 oz’ or ‘1 ounce’, for example, it is a coin with a fine weight of one ounce of gold. The value of an ounce of gold can easily be looked up on the internet.
Can you sell gold coins to the bank?
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Banks only buy and sell precious metals to their customers, because this simplifies the time-consuming verification of customers in accordance with money laundering laws or because the verification has already been carried out through the existing customer relationship. If your bank offers good conditions, this is an option. However, you should always check out alternatives such as direct trade with other private individuals. For example, PreMeSec.ch is suitable for this.
