Perth Mint sold diluted gold to China, got caught, and tried to cover it up

[OldGarandDad]

Perth Mint sold diluted gold to China, got caught, and tried to cover it up​

The $9 billion dirty secret of an Australian gold icon

In a bid to save money, the world's largest processor of newly mined gold started "doping" its bullion. Then its customers started asking questions.

amp.abc.net.au

The historic Perth Mint is facing a potential $9 billion recall of gold bars after selling diluted or "doped" bullion to China and then covering it up, according to a leaked internal report.



Hmmm... I'll have to don my scuba gear and see if there are any Perth Mint bars in my stash that is at the bottom of the lake due to that tragic boating accident.

 

[OldGarandDad]

Let me guess, they'll blame a defective XRF machine or an incompetent employee. So much for quality control checks if that is the case.

The larger problem is if a government mint is doing this, how many other governments are also doing this?

 

[Ttazzman]

Perth Mint sold diluted gold to China, got caught, and tried to cover it up​

The $9 billion dirty secret of an Australian gold icon

In a bid to save money, the world's largest processor of newly mined gold started "doping" its bullion. Then its customers started asking questions.

amp.abc.net.au

The historic Perth Mint is facing a potential $9 billion recall of gold bars after selling diluted or "doped" bullion to China and then covering it up, according to a leaked internal report.



Hmmm... I'll have to don my scuba gear and see if there are any Perth Mint bars in my stash that is at the bottom of the lake due to that tragic boating accident.

Reading the article I find it interesting that the gold in question is still 99.99 gold

 

[pmbug]

Reading the article I find it interesting that the gold in question is still 99.99 gold

It sounds like they were purposefully refining the bars to be 99.99 gold and 0.01 silver where most mints are actually delivering something like 99.9999 gold or something.

 

[Voodoo]

Let me guess, they'll blame a defective XRF machine or an incompetent employee. So much for quality control checks if that is the case.

The larger problem is if a government mint is doing this, how many other governments are also doing this?

I worried about my last APMEX purchase. Need to do some more investigation on those rounds.

 

[Ttazzman]

on the retail level i cant see how a pm verifier could tell the difference

 

[Casey Jones]

China, the home of all things cheap, fake, fraudulent or crappy...the ONE THING they would TRULY KNOW, is GOLD.

It's their culture. It's what they value.

Perth Mint could have sold that lower-purity stuff the world over, and never have been outed. But, no...they take it to CHINA.

Stupid...stupid...

 

[Voodoo]

on the retail level i cant see how a pm verifier could tell the difference

If I get something that's 99.99 only I'm happy. But obviously nothing is just as they pretend these days.

 

[<SLV>]

Their contract was for 99.99%, but only allows for 0.005% silver content (even though 0.01% may be something else). The problem is that there is between 0.005% and 0.01% silver.

The headlines are misleading hype.

 

[Voodoo]

Their contract was for 99.99%, but only allows for 0.005% silver content (even though 0.01% may be something else). The problem is that there is between 0.005% and 0.01% silver.

The headlines are misleading hype.

Oh heavens.... we got too much silver? The bigger problem with the Perth mint is that their word is Completely shot. The bigger scandel was all those metals they said they were holding for customers and that turned out to have big problems.

 

[Joe King]

Stupid...stupid...

My first thought, too. You'd think they'd know damn well that if anyone would would check, it'd be China.

 

[searcher]

From the link:

The Perth Mint has responded to an ABC Four Corners program on 6 March 2023 which alleged that The Perth Mint could face a potential recall of $9 billion worth of ‘doped’ one-kilogram gold bars from customers in China.

Perth Mint Responds to ABC TV Allegations | CoinNews

The Perth Mint has responded to an ABC Four Corners program on 6 March 2023 which alleged that The Perth Mint could face a potential recall of $9 billion worth of 'doped' one-kilogram gold bars from customers in China. The Perth Mint emphasises that there is no question about the gold purity and...

www.coinnews.net

 

[Casey Jones]

Perth Mint sold diluted gold to China, got caught, and tried to cover it up​

The $9 billion dirty secret of an Australian gold icon

In a bid to save money, the world's largest processor of newly mined gold started "doping" its bullion. Then its customers started asking questions.

amp.abc.net.au

The historic Perth Mint is facing a potential $9 billion recall of gold bars after selling diluted or "doped" bullion to China and then covering it up, according to a leaked internal report.



Hmmm... I'll have to don my scuba gear and see if there are any Perth Mint bars in my stash that is at the bottom of the lake due to that tragic boating accident.

Peter Schiff went into more detail on this.

The gold is less pure, true. It's still within the standards held for most of the industry - the Shanghai Exchange just demands a fraction higher purity.

But this is part of Australian ABC's ongoing campaign to taint gold, gold purchases, those who are involved with gold even on the periphery (as was Schiff's Euro Pacific Bank, which was subject to another ABC hit of dubious facts).

ABC is government owned; and the mission here is to cast suspicion on PM ownership as the province of criminals. This lower-purity of gold is part of a series of staged outrages, to illustrate the "corruption" of everyone involved with gold.

 

[Voodoo]

Peter Schiff went into more detail on this.

The gold is less pure, true. It's still within the standards held for most of the industry - the Shanghai Exchange just demands a fraction higher purity.

But this is part of Australian ABC's ongoing campaign to taint gold, gold purchases, those who are involved with gold even on the periphery (as was Schiff's Euro Pacific Bank, which was subject to another ABC hit of dubious facts).

ABC is government owned; and the mission here is to cast suspicion on PM ownership as the province of criminals. This lower-purity of gold is part of a series of staged outrages, to illustrate the "corruption" of everyone involved with gold.

That also corresponded with the big hit on gold price the other day. And they used this "doping" scandle as part of the excuse. Just more hit jobs on the bankers and WEF real competition, ie Gold and BRIC.

 

[Joe King]

So if my math is correct, the Perth mint shorted them approx 4964 grams of gold? That's what I got as the difference in grams between $9 billion in 99.9% purity and 99.99% purity.

 

[Voodoo]

So if my math is correct, the Perth mint shorted them approx 4964 grams of gold? That's what I got as the difference in grams between $9 billion in 99.9% purity and 99.99% purity.

The gold was still 4 nine fine. It had slightly too much silver.

 

[pmbug]

So if my math is correct, ...

You misunderstood. They did not short them any gold at all. They delivered $9b in slightly off spec bars as <slv> explained above. If the SGE demands new bars, it's going to cost the mint a bundle to ship, recast and redeliver the off spec bars.

 

[Joe King]

You misunderstood.

If the difference was one of purity, there's obviously more gold in a a 9999 bar vs a 999 bar.

If the bars had too much silver, than to get the same amount of gold, the bars would need to weigh more than a kilo each.

The gold was still 4 nine fine. It had slightly too much silver.

How can a 9999 bar have too much silver in it and still be 9999 fine if the weight is exactly one kilo? To have.
A one kilo 99.99% pure bar should only have .01% silver in it. If it has more than that, how can the bar c be four 9's fine? It is no longer 99.99% gold.

 

[Voodoo]

If the difference was one of purity, there's obviously more gold in a a 9999 bar vs a 999 bar.

If the bars had too much silver, than to get the same amount of gold, the bars would need to weigh more than a kilo each.



How can a 9999 bar have too much silver in it and still be 9999 fine if the weight is exactly one kilo? To have.
A one kilo 99.99% pure bar should only have .01% silver in it. If it has more than that, how can the bar c be four 9's fine? It is no longer 99.99% gold.

It's a rounding error. For some reason they are ok with a mixture of impurities but just not too much silver? Go figure. Silver is not the only impurity, you could have copper, lead, or any number of metals in the 0.01% impurities. So, say you have 10 metals all at exactly 0.001%.

I believe I saw that the Shanghai exchange said that silver can't be higher than 0.001% and it was 0.005% or something.

 

[pmbug]

@Joe King - see post #9 above and/or the link in post #12.

 

[Joe King]

@Joe King - see post #9 above and/or the link in post #12.

Ok, post nine says:

Their contract was for 99.99%, but only allows for 0.005% silver content (even though 0.01% may be something else). The problem is that there is between 0.005% and 0.01% silver.

So that means they actually wanted 99.995% purity, but only got 99.99%?


If the contract specifies 99.99%purity, but only allowed for ,005% to be silver, why would they want that other .005% to be something other than gold or silver? That'd mean they would get a less valuable metal.

 

[pmbug]

So that means they actually wanted 99.995% purity, but only got 99.99%?

No. They want 99.99% gold. The remaining .01% can be other metals but only half of the .01% can be silver.

If the contract specifies 99.99%purity, but only allowed for ,005% to be silver, why would they want that other .005% to be something other than gold or silver? That'd mean they would get a less valuable metal.

As explained in the link in post #12, less rigorous refining methods yielded more (free) gold overage for each bar. I can only assume this would be the motivation for objecting.

The SGE objection seems dumb, but Perth Mint agreed to their terms and might have to eat the cost of recasting the non compliant bars.

 

[Joe King]

No. They want 99.99% gold. The remaining .01% can be other metals but only half of the .01% can be silver.

So what other metal would they prefer that .005% be? If it's a less valuable metal than silver, they're losing money on the deal.

 

[pmbug]

... If it's a less valuable metal than silver, they're losing money on the deal.

*sigh*

From the link in post #12 that Joe refuses to read...

...
Due to the nature of the refining process, there are varying amounts of extra gold above 99.99% in each bar. This is known in the industry as the gold give-away because the customer does not pay for this extra gold. It is gold refining industry practice to minimise the gold give-away without affecting the purity minimum of 99.99%. Minimising is done through ‘doping’ or ‘alloying’ by ensuring sufficient volumes of non-gold elements. This practice does not impact the 99.99% purity of the gold that the customer pays for.

As part of The Perth Mint’s review of refining practices, new processes were implemented to ensure that one-kilogram bars would have on average minimum gold purity of 99.996%, compared with the industry standard of approximately 99.992%. As a result of this new practice, which came into effect in December 2021, the maximum non-gold component in a one-kilogram bar is 0.004% – which adheres to the SGE’s non-gold specification standards.
...

It sounds like the .005% silver limit was imposed to ensure a less efficient alloying process and more gold give-away yield.

 

[Voodoo]

So what other metal would they prefer that .005% be? If it's a less valuable metal than silver, they're losing money on the deal.

Think of it this way, they wanted to pay for 99.99% gold and get an extra 0.001-0.005 for free. The mint decided they didn't like that any more and diluted the gold down to the exact 99.99% so no more free bonus. The exchange caught them and called em out.

 

[OldGarandDad]

Think of it this way, they wanted to pay for 99.99% gold and get an extra 0.001-0.005 for free. The mint decided they didn't like that any more and diluted the gold down to the exact 99.99% so no more free bonus. The exchange caught them and called em out.

True.

This is a clear violation of the contract the mint had with the exchange. Now the mint is liable for damages as per contract law. Question is which kangaroo court is going to side with the Chinese?

 

[pmbug]

The Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) on Wednesday backed Perth Mint in denying that the Australian processor had sold it “doped” gold bars and said it could take action to protect its reputation.

“The relevant media failed to fulfill their responsibility to review the content, resulting in dissemination of inaccurate content on the Internet, causing serious damage to the reputation of the Shanghai Gold Exchange,” the exchange said in a statement on its website.
...

Shanghai Gold Exchange denies report on 'doped' gold bars from Australia

The Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) on Wednesday backed Perth Mint in denying that the Australian processor had sold it "doped" gold bars and said it could take action to protect its reputation.

www.reuters.com

 

[Joe King]

sigh*

From the link in post #12 that Joe refuses to read...

I did read it. That's why I asked what I did. If the contract specified that 9999 parts of 10,000 be gold, and only half of the remaining part be silver, than that other half part could be anything other than gold or silver and still meet contract requirements.
It's a twentieth of a gram per kilo bar.

 

[pmbug]

The Perth Mint's reputation for its gold purity is at risk after the London Bullion Market Association announced Thursday that it would conduct an investigation regarding allegations that it doped bullion shipped to China.

The investigation could impact the Perth Mint's standing in the LBMA's Good's Delivery List.
...
In a separate statement, the Perth Mint said it would work with the LBMA as it conducts its Incident Review Process.

LBMA investigating Perth Mint allegations after 100 tonnes of

Kitco News' general-interest stories takes a look at what is making headlines in the marketplace and how that is impacting precious metals prices

www.kitco.com

Someone at the LBMA is getting a free vacation to Australia.

 

[pmbug]

Perth Mint is off the hook with the London Bullion Market Association. The sovereign mint will remain on the Goods Delivery List after the LBMA ended its investigation into allegations that the mint's refining standards from 2018 to 2021 did not meet specifications set by Shanghai Gold Exchange.

After a month-long investigation, the LBMA said in a statement that it "did not find any instances of zero-tolerance non-conformance with the sovereign mint."
...

Perth Mint gets the all-clear from LBMA after month-long gold 'doping' investigation

Kitco News' general-interest stories takes a look at what is making headlines in the marketplace and how that is impacting precious metals prices

www.kitco.com

No blood, no foul

 

[Joe King]

The SGE objection seems dumb,

Obviously. Order 9999 and get 9999, but they still wanna bitch about it.

but Perth Mint agreed to their terms and might have to eat the cost of recasting the non compliant bars.

Apparently not, as it stands now. Seems that China got the 9,999 parts out of 10,000 that the contract specified.

 

[Goldhedge]

Well, I'm glad we got all that figured out!

 

[Casey Jones]

Remember: The Shanghai officials work for the CCP.

THE DEEP STATE BUREAUCRACY. There's no reason; no rationality. Probably those who wrote the specifications knew little about gold, metallurgy, the markets, or global standards.

THEY WERE IN POWER POSITIONS. YOU HAVE YOUR ORDERS.

And Shanghai specified, and Perth Mint did not deliver. Sloppy refining, or an intent to cheat? Seems a hard way to save a few bucks, and with a lot of downside.

More likely the Shanghai exchange was just establishing dominance.

 

[pmbug]

The chair of the Perth Mint says its dealings and trade of gold actually increased following a damning ABC report, showing investors weren’t scared off.

The Mint was hurled into the spotlight in March when a Four Corners report exposed problems with the Mint’s adherence to anti-money laundering rules enforced by the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC).

The ABC report also uncovered several instances of gold bars the Mint was trying to sell to the Shanghai Gold Exchange being knocked back because non-gold components in the bars didn’t meet the Exchange’s high purity thresholds.

That prompted a Senate inquiry, launched in July, which held a public hearing in Perth on Friday.
...

More:

https://www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/perth-mint-gold-trade-increased-after-antimoney-laundering-scandal-chair-tells-inquiry/news-story/fbcee832962ade7938889c1592be62e6

 

[pmbug]

The taxpayer-owned Perth Mint and its operator Gold Corporation have avoided a fine despite Australia’s finance watchdog uncovering a litany of failures in its compliance with anti-money laundering and terrorism finance laws.

Instead, Gold Corp has entered into an “enforceable undertaking” with AUSTRAC which sets in stone a requirement for the organisation to fix its anti-money laundering compliance rules in full by April 2025.
...

More:

Perth Mint avoids fine despite litany of compliance failures

Gold Corp has entered into an “enforceable undertaking” with AUSTRAC which sets in stone a requirement for the organisation to remediate its anti-money laundering compliance.

www.smh.com.au

 

[chieftain]

Fun fact, Perth Mint didn't ship them dodgy bars. The Chinese wanted the gold for free, so they cooked up some of their chinesium knockoffs and cried foul.