The largest living land animal, the elephant, is celebrated in a new series of platinum bullion coins launched by Prestige Bullion, a joint venture between the South African Mint and Rand Refinery. Prestige Bullion’s mandate is the management of South Africa’s legal tender precious metal bullion coin portfolio including the Krugerrand series and the Big 5 coins.
The new platinum bullion coin series, featuring Africa’s ‘Big Five’, will include a new animal every six months from 2020 to 2022, beginning with the elephant and followed by the lion, rhino, leopard and buffalo. The series is a tribute to Africa’s unique natural heritage and its launch follows the introduction of the Big 5 platinum proof coin series in 2019.
The 1 oz coins are struck in 999.5 platinum and minted to bullion standard. All platinum Big 5 coins in the series will be distributed through Prestige Bullion’s global distribution network, providing investors around the world with another choice in platinum. The coins are legal tender in South Africa with a face value of twenty rand (ZAR 20) and are priced based on precious metal content.
It is especially fitting that South Africa is issuing this new platinum bullion series; the country has the largest platinum reserves of anywhere in the world, accounting for over 70 per cent of global platinum mining supply annually.
Growth in platinum bullion
Prestige Bullion adds South Africa to a growing number of countries from around the world that have introduced platinum products over the last few years. The Royal Mint and the Austrian Mint now produce platinum bullion coins: the former as part of its Britannia and Queen’s Beasts collections and the latter through its platinum Vienna Philharmonic series.
This year sees even more choice for investors, as The Royal Mint has added a platinum Falcon to its Queen’s Beasts series and the Perth Mint has introduced the first-ever platinum proof coin as part of its Australian Lunar series III. Platinum bars and coins have been a consistent platinum demand source, averaging over 300 koz each year since 2015. As well as accessibility and liquidity, investing in platinum bullion in the form of bars and coins can be attractive to investors as it carries no credit or counterparty risk, unlike stocks or bonds. Adding platinum to a portfolio can also have diversification benefits.
The Big 5 Elephant Platinum Bullion Coin Obverse (L) and Reverse (R)
