How do coin deals happen?

Longacre

Can anyone enlighten me as to how a coin deal might occur (between dealers). For instance, in a dealer to dealer transaction, I assume that each transaction involves many coins, rather than a buy/sell/trade for a single coin. Also, I assume the some transactions are "bundled" with others. For example, if Dealer A wants coins 1,2, and 3 from Dealer B, then Dealer A might also have to take coins 4 and 5 from Dealer B as part of the deal. I assume that this might be a way to bundle some more common pieces in order to "move" them, but I am not sure if this is how things really work. I'm curious about what happens behind the scenes, so if any dealer can provide some insight, I would appreciate it. Thanks.

kieferscoins

There are many ways. Before the show in hotel rooms, they get together and go through boxes of coins....buy/sell back and forth. At shows they might sell just one coin to a dealer when it comes back from the grading service or whole boxes at a time. Most dealers just pick what they want unless the dealer is selling the whole group as one lot...... There are so many ways, its no big secret or exciting thing that happens.

Cameron Kiefer

mr1931S

My observations of dealers busily trading amonthemselves at shows is that money talks and.....

kranky

I'm not a dealer, but I can comment on what I've seen based on the times I have helped out at a dealer's table.

The dealer-to-dealer transactions I've seen fall into three types.

1. Dealer A walks up to Dealer B's table and looks through the cases just like a retail customer would. If there are items he/she is interested in, he asks for a price. There may be a bit of negotiation, and a decision is made. Each item (individual coin, roll, set, partial set, etc.) is a separate deal.

2. Dealer A comes up to Dealer B's table offering coins. Dealer B looks through the inventory and the same process takes place. Again, each item is a separate deal.

3. Dealer A is working out a purchase with someone, and brings part of the material over to Dealer B to see if B is interested. B may offer a price for that part of the deal. Dealer A might or might not complete the original deal. For example, the original deal may include paper money and A doesn't deal in it, so he/she wants to know what it's sellable for, before completing the original deal.

coinguy1

<< <i> I assume that each transaction involves many coins, rather than a buy/sell/trade for a single coin. >>

Longacre, that is not necessarily the case. Often dealer A simply looks through the inventory of dealer B and gets price quotes on the coins he's interested in. Dealer A might buy only one or two coins from dealer B.

However, there are times when a collector or dealer has a set, "deal" or collection for sale and only wants to sell it as a whole. In that scenario the potential buyer looks examines the coins, adds up the sum of the parts (including the items he doesn't really want or care about) and sees if he can get his numbers to add up to the asking price. Occasionally there might be an especially esoteric coin involved and/or one over which there is a substantial disagreement regarding its value. The two dealers might mutually agree to remove that coin from the "deal" in order to get the transaction completed.

If a non-dealer has a collection for sale it is often advisable to offer it in its entirety. If he allows buyers to pick it over, he might initially be happy about the coins he has sold quickly, but later realize he has been left/stuck with un-saleable material and didn't do so well, after all.