PM Dealer- Bullion Direct- Files for Bankruptcy

ShadyDave · July 30, 2015 10:30AM

Bullion Direct has filed for bankruptcy. I thought that people might be interested in a larger US PM dealer collapsing along with PM prices.

I've never purchased coins or bullion from them but I have seen people throw their name around.

segoja · July 30, 2015 10:32AM

Coinosaurus · July 30, 2015 10:42AM

Is this one of those companies that stores PMs for you?

segoja · July 30, 2015 10:48AM

yes if you believe them, no in reality. $25 Million possibly missing according to reports.

MsMorrisine · July 30, 2015 10:53AM

If they are on the website master list, they won't be in 5 minutes.

wow. another implosion.

ShadyDave · July 30, 2015 10:56AM

<< Is this one of those companies that stores PMs for you? >>

That is one of their lines of business, "storage". They also sell PM's and some gold/silver coins.

They also have a poor replica of what Ian Russell is doing with Great Collections (I can't say enough good things about my experiences with GC). Bullion Exchange has "the nucleo" where people can sell their PM's and Bullion Exchange takes possession of the coins/PM's, trade funds and take a cut. I've never used it...and will never.

roadrunner · July 30, 2015 10:59AM

First Tulving, now BD. This is what happens when bear markets continue to run. Coin dealers went bankrupt in the 1993-1997 coin downturn. Tulving went under in the early 1990's as well when the FTC came down on them.

If you don't have it in your hands....you don't own it. I never order bullion on line. I always go to a show or shop and take it home with me the same day. There's no way to know the balance sheet of any of these guys. Having had one coin dealer screw me via a bankruptcy in the 1990's, I look both ways, twice..... before crossing the street.

PerryHall · July 30, 2015 8:08PM

<< Having had one coin dealer screw me via a bankruptcy in the 1990's, I look both ways, twice..... before crossing the street. >>

Sorry to hear this. Hopefully your loss wasn't too great. An experience like this would certainly shape your strategy for buying bullion in the future. How do you buy bullion now? Do you still buy from on-line bullion companies?

grip · July 30, 2015 8:40PM

<< First Tulving, now BD. This is what happens when bear markets continue to run. Coin dealers went bankrupt in the 1993-1997 coin downturn. Tulving went under in the early 1990's as well when the FTC came down on them.

If you don't have it in your hands....you don't own it. I never order bullion on line. I always go to a show or shop and take it home with me the same day. There's no way to know the balance sheet of any of these guys. Having had one coin dealer screw me via a bankruptcy in the 1990's, I look both ways, twice..... before crossing the street. >>

Excellent advice.

hchcoin · July 30, 2015 11:13PM

<< yes if you believe them, no in reality. $25 Million possibly missing according to reports. >>

Wow!

A bird in the hand is better than two in the bush.

Windycity · July 30, 2015 11:21PM

Another reason that the best way to own gold is owning physical gold and storing it you our own bank safe box!!

vplite · July 30, 2015 11:24PM

<< Another reason that the best way to own gold is owning physical gold and storing it you our own bank safe box!! >>

LanLord · July 30, 2015 11:41PM

<< 

<< Another reason that the best way to own gold is owning physical gold and storing it you our own bank safe box!! >>

>>

PerryHall · July 30, 2015 11:43PM

What about those people who just bought some bullion and paid for shipping to their home---are they SOL?

PerryHall · July 30, 2015 11:49PM

All this is nothing new. Anyone remember Mark and Alan Yaffe and their National Gold Exchange that scammed their customers in 2009 and then filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy?

telephoto1 · July 31, 2015 12:15AM

I happened to catch a salient question at the bottom when reading the article...perhaps one of our resident lawyers can chime in on this; is it more than a coincidence that the filing happens to occur during a low point in metals prices? Does this help them somehow monetarily?

CaptHenway · July 31, 2015 12:43AM

<< 

<< 

<< Another reason that the best way to own gold is owning physical gold and storing it you our own bank safe box!! >>

>>

Cougar1978 · July 31, 2015 1:09AM

owning physical gold only way to go

ricko · July 31, 2015 2:28AM

I maintain ownership of my PM's....would not even contemplate third party 'holding' situation. Surefire way to lose...Cheers, RickO

MonsterCoinz · July 31, 2015 2:43AM

Not only are they out the digital gold and silver that they 'store', they're also out whatever they've lost in the stock market with the money that was supposed to be a physical asset.

JazzmanJAB · July 31, 2015 3:04AM

<< I maintain ownership of my PM's....would not even contemplate third party 'holding' situation. Surefire way to lose...Cheers, RickO >>

+1

BillJones · July 31, 2015 3:08AM

Having some bullion dealer store your precious metals for you after you have paid for them is asking for trouble. If you want to own gold, keep it in your hands and store it yourself.

joebb21 · July 31, 2015 3:10AM

<< I happened to catch a salient question at the bottom when reading the article...perhaps one of our resident lawyers can chime in on this; is it more than a coincidence that the filing happens to occur during a low point in metals prices? Does this help them somehow monetarily? >>

I saw this as well and wondered the same thing.

My thought process was that if clients bought in at higher prices and asked for them to be stored (giving the company say $1300+ per ounce since last year, and now its worth $1100, one can easily replace the gold at a lower cost-ie a win for the company.

Its only when prices go up that I see it not working for them.

obviously there must be other loss factors

BAJJERFAN · July 31, 2015 7:29AM

<< Bullion Direct has filed for bankruptcy. I thought that people might be interested in a larger US PM dealer collapsing along with PM prices.

I've never purchased coins or bullion from them but I have seen people throw their name around. >>

Why aren't they being jailed for theft and mail order fraud instead of the bankruptcy thing? They stole stuff from people/customers.

roadrunner · July 31, 2015 10:49AM

The longer the bear market drags on, and the longer bullion dealers rob Peter to pay Paul, eventually it catches up to them. If these guys don't hedge against their inventories during sharp down swings they can get into trouble. Either that or buy/sell very quickly. Others may have been playing in the leveraged futures or derivatives markets and got caught in too big a swing....wiping them out. For those that buy and sell within their means, on stuf they really own, they survive.

BAJJERFAN · July 31, 2015 11:05AM

<< 

<< I happened to catch a salient question at the bottom when reading the article...perhaps one of our resident lawyers can chime in on this; is it more than a coincidence that the filing happens to occur during a low point in metals prices? Does this help them somehow monetarily? >>

I saw this as well and wondered the same thing.

My thought process was that if clients bought in at higher prices and asked for them to be stored (giving the company say $1300+ per ounce since last year, and now its worth $1100, one can easily replace the gold at a lower cost-ie a win for the company.

Its only when prices go up that I see it not working for them.

obviously there must be other loss factors >>

Apparently the only thing they stored for Joe Customer was IOUGs. I Owe You Gold. Who knows what they did with JC's money since they don't have it or his gold.

bestday · July 31, 2015 2:11PM

<< What about those people who just bought some bullion and paid for shipping to their home---are they SOL? >>

If they paid by check . they become creditors going to wait in line .. meaning many times tough crapp.. CC buyers have no loss

Elcontador · July 31, 2015 3:35PM

<< First Tulving, now BD. This is what happens when bear markets continue to run. Coin dealers went bankrupt in the 1993-1997 coin downturn. Tulving went under in the early 1990's as well when the FTC came down on them.

If you don't have it in your hands....you don't own it. I never order bullion on line. I always go to a show or shop and take it home with me the same day. There's no way to know the balance sheet of any of these guys. Having had one coin dealer screw me via a bankruptcy in the 1990's, I look both ways, twice..... before crossing the street. >>

Jonathan's Coins here in Inglewood, CA went BK after the metals bust in the early 80s. He didn't have the coins, but promised to give them to people if they paid them up front. You know the rest. Think the owner of the shop did 4 years in the big house.

BAJJERFAN · July 31, 2015 10:52PM

<< 

<< What about those people who just bought some bullion and paid for shipping to their home---are they SOL? >>

If they paid by check . they become creditors going to wait in line .. meaning many times tough crapp.. CC buyers have no loss >>

Can a CC company pull $$$ from a situation where assets have likely been frozen? Too late now.

Booger9989 · July 31, 2015 11:29PM

<< 

<< Bullion Direct has filed for bankruptcy. I thought that people might be interested in a larger US PM dealer collapsing along with PM prices.

I've never purchased coins or bullion from them but I have seen people throw their name around. >>

Why aren't they being jailed for theft and mail order fraud instead of the bankruptcy thing? They stole stuff from people/customers. >>

Cause this is the good ol USA!!! We have a great system for the one who can afford it. Not so much for the ones who can't!

davewesen · July 31, 2015 11:39PM

<< 

<< 

<< Bullion Direct has filed for bankruptcy. I thought that people might be interested in a larger US PM dealer collapsing along with PM prices.

I've never purchased coins or bullion from them but I have seen people throw their name around. >>

Why aren't they being jailed for theft and mail order fraud instead of the bankruptcy thing? They stole stuff from people/customers. >>

Cause this is the good ol USA!!! We have a great system for the one who can afford it. Not so much for the ones who can't! >>

The millions they stole are helping buy good lawyers...

johnny9434 · August 1, 2015 12:36AM

what a pisser that one is. a sdb works wonders i guess

metalmeister · August 1, 2015 1:04AM

I can't believe folks would "trust" a Gold holding company holding "Your" Gold in their vaults in this environment today. It was probably just paper IOU's anyway. Not so safe as advertised.

PM Dealer- Bullion Direct- Files for Bankruptcy

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