Based in Germany, coininvest.com is one of Europe’s leading online providers of physical bullion, buying and selling precious metals in the form of coins and bars. Part of NASDAQ-listed StoneX Group Inc., a Fortune 500 company, coininvest.com has served its global client base, which includes private individuals, institutional investors, financial advisors and resellers, for over 14 years.
What are the advantages of being an online provider of precious metals?
I would say there are many advantages! We offer the chance for investors and collectors to buy and sell precious metals in the form of bars and coins and enjoy excellent relationships with the world’s most prestigious mints and refiners. We stock products in gold, silver, palladium and platinum, providing our customers with a wide choice of inflation-safe assets. Prices at coininvest.com are especially competitive as we avoid intermediaries and are able to purchase directly from producers.
Many people do not feel comfortable carrying large amounts of cash to physical shops to buy items such as coins or bars and then having to transport their purchases home again - particularly during a pandemic. As an online platform, it is easy and stress-free for customers to buy from us. This also means that there are no limitations to the number of people that visit us. They can pay with wire transfer or credit cards. The coininvest.com warehouse stocks a large variety of coins and bars that are ready to ship the same day. Our deliveries are insured and discreetly packaged allowing for a secure and confident customer experience.
We update our prices according to the spot price every minute, giving our clients a high level of transparency. Furthermore, bulk pricing allows resellers to purchase from us at a special rate.
Obverse of the Red Dragon of Wales 1oz platinum bullion coin, part of the Queen’s Beasts series from the UK’s Royal Mint
It has been an extraordinary six months in the precious metals markets due to the COVID-19 pandemic – how has this impacted coininvest.com’s business?
We are indeed living in extraordinary and unprecedented times. We have managed to safely continue our online services and deliveries from our warehouse.
The pandemic has changed the needs of our client base. We are seeing that they are interested in investing in precious metals due to economic and geopolitical uncertainty which is prevalent on a global scale. Precious metals are traditionally less volatile than other forms of investment which makes them an interesting proposition in times of economic instability. With regards to platinum, we aren’t seeing a difference in demand between bars and coins, both are equally as popular and in high demand. Unfortunately, the pandemic related closures of refiners and mints has reduced availability of platinum products more than those in gold.
We at coininvest.com are very fortunate to be direct distributors of government-owned mints such as The Royal Mint and the Royal Canadian Mint and we benefited from stock levels established before the pandemic. However, sourcing additional material has been, and continues to be, challenging, to say the least. There are limited to no platinum coins or bars available on secondary markets, making it almost impossible to supplement our stock.
How do you see the remainder of 2020 playing out for bars and coins?
This is a difficult one! If you would have asked me back in January how I envisioned 2020, I would never have guessed that we would be where we are now.
Interest in platinum bars and coins is currently very high but, as mentioned, we are facing tremendous challenges with supply. There are limited new product announcements meaning that demand cannot be met. We highly anticipate the release of the 2021 platinum Britannia from the Royal Mint and are confident that this will fly off the shelves!
Is the recent cut in VAT in Germany having much of an impact on retail investment demand?
The VAT decrease here in Germany has drawn attention to VAT-liable investment products such as white metal for the simple fact that saving this three per cent is such a unique opportunity.
How well is the demand case for platinum investment in Germany understood?
German customers are generally well educated when it comes to platinum. The fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) market is no doubt responsible for this as platinum plays such a critical role in emissions control and air quality. With the German government leading the way in zero-emission fuels, and almost one million people employed by the automobile sector across the country, it is natural that there would be such an interest in platinum from our German customer base.
Working with the World Platinum Investment Council, we are always looking to give investors insight and information on developments in the platinum bullion market.
Daniel Marburger, Managing Director of coininvest.com
