Flows this week

I don’t know if you saw it, but the other day on Zerohedge there was an article that referred to a research piece by J.P. Morgan Private Bank expressing concerns over the reserve status of the U.S. dollar. And it shows that J.P.’s private bank clients hold virtually zero gold, but the bank is now suggesting that they hold up to 5%. If institutional investors move into gold on that scale, it would be momentous.

US flows for June

UK flows for June

While pawning gold has long been an option for quick funds in a country that is the world’s second-biggest consumer of the yellow metal, several lenders told Reuters of unprecedented demand as people struggle to secure loans from banks grappling with bad debt and a shadow lending industry stung by a liquidity crunch.

The trend, which has prompted some lenders to impose restrictions as risks and borrowing costs rise, has been accelerated by record gold prices.

Gold consumption in China reached 523.54 metric tons during the first half of 2019, down 3.27 percent year-on-year, against the backdrop of China closing down outdated production facilities and optimizing its industrial structure, according to the China Gold Association.

Swiss gold exports to the United Kingdom rose to the highest in six years, driven by a surge in demand for exchange-traded funds.

Switzerland shipped 90.7 tons of bullion to the U.K. in July, the most since September 2012, according to data on the website of Swiss Federal Customs Administration. That compares with just 7.4 tons in June.

Christiaan Trunz, another former JPMorgan metals trader, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to conspiracy and to manipulating prices in the precious-metals market as part of the U.S. government’s continuing crackdown on bogus spoofing trades.

Flows this week

Dignity Gold, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dignity Holdings, LLC and a leader in cryptocurrency, today announced that through SION Trading FZE, it has hired Bureau Veritas, a world leader in testing, inspection, and certification (TIC) services, to count the gold backing its tokens. SION Trading FZE is supplying the safe keeping receipt (SKR) for the gold that is backing Dignity Gold and has entered into an official agreement with Bureau Veritas to verify and count the gold. Under the supervision of Joseph Chapman, North American Audits Manager, Metals and Minerals Division at Bureau Veritas, company executives in Dubai will be counting the initial $3 billion out of Dignity Gold's 395,000 kilograms of gold provided under the SKR agreement. The first verification will be completed in September 2019.