A gold bar, also called gold bullion or a gold ingot, is a quantity of refined metallic gold of any shape that is made by a bar producer meeting standard conditions of manufacture, labeling, and record keeping. Larger gold bars that are produced by pouring the molten metal into molds are called ingots. Smaller bars may be manufactured by minting or stamping from appropriately rolled gold sheets. The standard gold bar held as gold reserves by central banks and traded among bullion dealers is the 400-troy-ounce (12.4 kg or 438.9 ounces) Good Delivery gold bar. The kilobar, which is 1000 grams in mass (32.15 troy ounces), is the bar that is more manageable and is used extensively for trading and investment. The premium on these bars when traded is very low over the spot value of the gold, making it ideal for small transfers between banks and traders. Most kilobars are flat, although some investors, particularly in Europe, prefer the brick shape.[1] Asian markets differ in that they prefer gram gold bars as opposed to Troy ounce measurements. Popular sizes in the Asian region include 10 grams, 100 grams and 1,000 gram bars.[2]
Types
A minted bar (left) and a cast bar (right)
Based upon how they are manufactured, gold bars are categorized as having been cast or minted, with both differing in their appearance and price.[1] Cast bars are created in a similar method to that of ingots, whereby molten gold is poured into a bar-shaped mold and left to solidify. This process often leads to malformed bars with uneven surfaces which, although imperfect, make each bar unique and easier to identify. Cast bars are also cheaper than minted bars, because they are quicker to produce and require less handling.
Minted bars are made from gold blanks that have been cut to a required dimension from a flat piece of gold. These are identified by having smooth and even surfaces.
Security features
To prevent bars from being counterfeited or stolen, manufacturers have developed ways to verify genuine bars, with the most common way being to brand bars with registered serial numbers or providing a certificate of authenticity. In a recent trend, many refineries would stamp serial numbers even on the smallest bars, and the number on the bar should match the number on accompanying certificate.[3]
In contrast to cast bars (which are often handled directly), minted bars are generally sealed in protective packaging to prevent tampering and keep them from becoming damaged. A hologram security feature known as a Kinegram can also be inserted into the packaging. Bars that contain these are called Kinebars.[4]
1 oz diffractive kinebar
Bar in protective casing
Standard bar weights
Gold prices (US$ per troy ounce), in nominal US$ and inflation adjusted US$ from 1914 onward
Gold is measured in troy ounces, often simply referred to as ounces when the reference to gold is evident. One troy ounce is equivalent to 31.1034768 grams. Commonly encountered in daily life is the avoirdupois ounce, an Imperial weight in countries still using British weights and measures or United States customary units. The avoirdupois ounce is lighter than the troy ounce; one avoirdupois ounce equals 28.349523125 grams.[5]
The super-size is worth more than the standard gold bar held and traded internationally by central banks and bullion dealers is the Good Delivery bar with a 400 oz (troy-ounce) (12.4 kg or 438.9 ounces) nominal weight. However, its precise gold content is permitted to vary between 350 oz and 430 oz. The minimum purity required is 99.5% gold. These bars must be stored in recognized and secure gold bullion vaults to maintain their quality status of Good Delivery. The recorded provenance of this bar assures integrity and maximum resale value.[6]
One tonne = 1000 kilograms = 32,150.746 troy ounces.
One kilogram = 1000 grams = 32.15074656 troy ounces.
One tola = 11.6638038 grams = 0.375 troy ounces.
One tael = 50 grams.[notes 1]
TT (ten tola) = 117 grams (3.75 oz)
Tola is a traditional Indian measure for the weight of gold and prevalent to this day. Many international gold manufacturers supply tola bars of 999.96 purity.
Saying something is “as secure as Fort Knox” implies way stronger protection than you might have realized. As home to about half of the U.S. gold reserves, Fort Knox has been called the most secure vault on the planet.
You won’t be able to get too close to the United States Bullion Depository (the proper name of Fort Knox) because it’s surrounded by a steel fence. Even the building itself is hardcore, made of concrete-lined granite and reinforced by steel to help it withstand attacks, according to the U.S. Treasury.
The U.S. Treasury says Fort Knox is “equipped with the latest and most modern protective devices.” It hasn’t confirmed exactly what those devices are, but rumor has it the vault grounds are surrounded by land mines and electric fences; when a laser is triggered, and a radar keeps watch over the area. (Learn these 20 secrets a home security installer won’t tell you.) The Treasury doesn’t hide anything about the guards outside, though. There’s one guard box at each of the building’s four corners, plus sentry boxes by the entrance. And you won’t want to mess with them—the basement of Fort Knox has a shooting range where guards can work on their aim.
If anything were to happen, the site also happens to share its home with 40,000 soldiers, family members, and civilian employees at the Fort Knox Army post. The building also has its own emergency power plant and water system. (They might not be Fort Knox-worthy, but don’t miss these 13 tips that can save your home from a break-in.)
Not that it would be easy to even make it this far, but the door to the vault is made of steel and concrete and weighs more than 20 tons. No single person knows how to get in. Instead, certain staff members know just one of several combinations, and they’d need to dial them separately to open the vaults.
The
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских
Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик, tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh
Respublik; IPA: [sɐˈjʉs sɐ'vʲetskʲɪx sət͡sɨɐlʲɪs'tʲit͡ɕɪskʲɪx
rʲɪsˈpublʲɪk] ( listen)) abbreviated to USSR (Russian: СССР, tr. SSSR)
and SU (Russian: СС, tr. SS) or shortened to the Soviet Union (Russian:
Сове́тский Сою́з, tr. Sovetskij Soyuz; IPA: [sɐ'vʲetskʲɪj sɐˈjʉs]), was a
Marxist–Leninist state[3][4][5][6] on the Eurasian continent that
existed between 1922 and 1991. It was governed as a single-party state
by the Communist Party with Moscow as its capital.[7] A union of
multiple subnational Soviet republics, its government and economy were
highly centralized.
The Soviet Union had its roots in the Russian
Revolution of 1917, which overthrew the Russian Empire. The Bolsheviks,
the majority faction of the Social Democratic Labour Party, led by
Vladimir Lenin, then led a second revolution which overthrew the
provisional government and established the Russian Socialist Federative
Soviet Republic (renamed Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic in
1936), beginning a civil war between pro-revolution Reds and
counter-revolution Whites. The Red Army entered several territories of
the former Russian Empire, and helped local Communists take power
through soviets that nominally acted on behalf of workers and peasants.
In 1922, the Communists were victorious, forming the Soviet Union with
the unification of the Russian, Transcaucasian, Ukrainian, and
Byelorussian republics. Following Lenin's death in 1924, a troika
collective leadership and a brief power struggle, Joseph Stalin came to
power in the mid-1920s. Stalin suppressed political opposition to him,
committed the state ideology to Marxism–Leninism (which he created) and
initiated a centrally planned economy. As a result, the country
underwent a period of rapid industrialisation and collectivisation which
laid the basis for its later war effort and dominance after World War
II.[8] However, Stalin established political paranoia, and introduced
arbitrary arrests on a massive scale after which authorities transferred
many people (military leaders, Communist Party members, ordinary
citizens alike) to correctional labour camps or sentenced them to
execution.
In the beginning of World War II, after the United
Kingdom and France rejected an alliance with the Soviet Union against
Nazi Germany, the U.S.S.R. signed a non-aggression pact with Germany;
the treaty delayed confrontation between the two countries, but was
disregarded in 1941 when the Nazis invaded, opening the largest and
bloodiest theatre of combat in history. Soviet war casualties accounted
for the highest proportion of the conflict in the cost of acquiring the
upper hand over Axis forces at intense battles such as Stalingrad.
Soviet forces eventually drove through Eastern Europe and captured
Berlin in 1945, inflicting the vast majority of German losses.[9] Soviet
occupied territory conquered from Axis forces in Central and Eastern
Europe became satellite states of the Eastern Bloc. Ideological and
political differences with Western Bloc counterparts directed by the
United States led to the forming of economic and military pacts,
culminating in the prolonged Cold War.
Following Stalin's death
in 1953, a period of moderate social and economic liberalization (known
as "de-Stalinization") occurred under the administration of Nikita
Khrushchev. The Soviet Union then went on to initiate significant
technological achievements of the 20th century, including launching the
first ever satellite and world's first human spaceflight, which led it
into the Space Race. The 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis marked a period of
extreme tension between the two superpowers, considered the closest to a
mutual nuclear confrontation. In the 1970s, a relaxation of relations
followed, but tensions resumed when the Soviet Union began providing
military assistance in Afghanistan at the request of its new socialist
government in 1979. The campaign drained economic resources and dragged
on without achieving meaningful political results.[10][11]
In the
late 1980s the last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, sought to reform
the Union and move it in the direction of Nordic-style social
democracy,[12][13] introducing the policies of glasnost and perestroika
in an attempt to end the period of economic stagnation and democratize
the government. However, this led to the rise of strong nationalist and
separatist movements. Central authorities initiated a referendum,
boycotted by the Baltic republics, Armenia, Georgia, and Moldova, which
resulted in the majority of participating citizens voting in favour of
preserving the Union as a renewed federation. In August 1991, a coup
d'état was attempted by hardliners against Gorbachev, with the intention
of reversing his policies. The coup failed, with Russian President
Boris Yeltsin playing a high-profile role in facing down the coup,
resulting in the banning of the Communist Party. On 25 December 1991,
Gorbachev resigned and the remaining twelve constituent republics
emerged from the dissolution of the Soviet Union as independent
post-Soviet states.[14] The Russian Federation (formerly the Russian
SFSR) assumed the Soviet Union's rights and obligations and is
recognised as its continued legal personality