What do companies do with the gold and coins they buy from consumers?

Posted on 14 February 2012 by

Question by lahdiva1369: What do companies do with the gold and coins they buy from consumers?
I have some old coins I’m thinking of taking to one of these “We Buy . . .” fairs—some from the 1800s—and I suddenly wondered what do these companies actually do with all this stuff they buy? Melt it down? Do they resell it to consumers, to an auction house, private buyers?

Best answer:

Answer by Matt
They look at it and see if it has value beyond the value of the gold itself. If it a nice piece or a collectible coin, they will sell it iff as such. If it is not, then they melt it for the raw materials.

Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!

Related posts:

  1. What is the melt value of a dollar bill?
  2. Hip Hop artists who waste 1000′s of dollars on gold jewelry have unintentionally made a very wise investment.

One Comment

  1. Gary

    on 14th Feb, 12 03:02am

    Up to the 1970′s for those of us who are old enough to remember, it used to be illegal to possess gold. Coins of gold if they are melted down would constitute a crime of defacing currency. However, it wouldn’t surprise me a bit to find out that, to its not only going to what sources you say above but it is being made into jewelry, Gold Metal Foil for certificates, hoarding for the upcoming great economic collapse, etc.

    I can remember when it was illegal to own gold and I heard rumors about bank customers who claimed that they had gold locked away in their safety deposit boxes and would become very distraught as they thought that someone had gotten into their safety deposit boxes and had absconded with the yellow metal. You know, my memory is kind of foggy now that I am an old man, and I have always been considered feeble in the mind by those “Who are in the know”, but it seems that I remember that perhaps an old judge or two used to come in and frequent those vaults. I got to wondering about that. I’ve been wondering ever since what they were doing in there? Who would be the criminal in this case if this really did happen? Would it be the person who panned his behind off in some creek or the fellow, perhaps using his authority to collect the contraband in the name of the law? Which way did it go?