Recent data published by The Royal Mint indicates that British investors are buying up fractional silver and gold pieces as a tax-efficient means of wealth preservation.
According to The Royal Mint, silver coin sales soared 55% year on year in the first quarter of its reporting period, contributing to a 14% surge in overall investment coin sales.
It comes amid a jump in precious metal prices amid global conflict and turmoil. Year to date, gold is currently up more than 16% and silver around 18%.
Coin sales now account for 74% of all physical investment sales by The Royal Mint as investors look for tax-efficient investments, said Royal Mint’s PR partner MHP Group.
These investment coins offer investors an entry into precious metal investing on a fractional basis (i.e, without having to purchase a traditional ounce bar).
They are also free from Capital Gains Tax (CGT) charges at a time when thresholds continue to become stricter.
In the first quarter of this financial year, 59% of gold physical bullion investments were in coins compared to last year, when this was evenly split between precious metals coins and bars.
As a result of this escalating demand, The Royal Mint received its largest ever order of bullion coins through a multimillion-pound investment order that is being stored in the company’s vaulting facility in South Wales.
Stuart O’Reilly, market insights manager at The Royal Mint said: “As interest grows in precious metals investing, investors are also being smart in how they invest in gold and silver.
“Fractional bullion coins have offered investors a means to invest in a tax-efficient way through lower sums that protect their future investment gains.”
A similar trend is evident in the fine wine space, which is also exempt from CGT.
Fine wine investment agency WineCap recently said the global fine wine market is growing and diversifying at an “unprecedented rate”, with Around 30% of the UK’s high-net-worth investors incorporate fine wine into their portfolios.