With the inflation we have experienced over the past few years, investing in gold as an asset class has returned to the forefront. It has had positive annual returns in 2023, 2024, and so far in 2025. The gains have been impressive.
Owning Gold: Easy or Difficult?
Years ago, it was difficult for investors to own gold. There were coins, bars, and jewelry. These forms had the big drawbacks of being hard to buy and sell, heavy to cart around, and expensive to store.
Today, Wall Street has created vehicles that allow gold to be held through ETFs and mutual funds. With these, investors can easily buy and sell, and ownership is through shares that can be held with a broker, like any other stock.
With respect to stocks, the other way investors can get exposure to gold is through ownership of shares in gold mining companies.
Fun Facts About Gold Coins
Despite all the publicity gold gets these days, what do we really know about gold? Here are some fun facts that may provide a better understanding of this precious metal.
- Gold is a precious metal that is part of the group of metals that include platinum, palladium, and silver that investors seek as a store of value.
- Gold and silver have been used in coins for centuries, and investors can still buy coins in these metals.
- The US, Canada, South Africa, China, and Mexico are countries that traditionally coin precious metals.
- Old coins not only have value because of their precious metal content, but may also have additional numismatic value due to their demand from collectors. The highest price paid at auction for a gold coin was $18.9 million in 2021 for a 1933 $20 Double Eagle gold piece.
The Value of Gold: Inflation vs. Interest Rates
As mentioned, gold has been viewed over the ages as a store of value in the face of uncertain political and economic times. It is weakly correlated to financial markets given its intrinsic value (natural scarcity + high cost to produce). Inflation erodes the value of fiat currencies (things cost more currency to buy). Gold is a commodity that has an intrinsic historical demand that helps it keep up with inflation.
Interest rates also influence the demand for gold. Since gold, unlike bonds, rental real estate, and shares in companies, does not produce any cash flow, there is an opportunity cost to owning gold.
- When interest rates are “high”, investors miss out on the chance to earn money.
- When rates are “low”, the give-up is less, so the willingness to hold gold is greater.
Other elemental facts about gold:
- Gold (AU) is an element you can find on the Periodic Table of Elements with an Atomic Number of 79.
- Gold is known for its high malleability, ductility, excellent electrical conductivity, and exceptional resistance to corrosion and most acids, which are characteristic of noble metals.
- It will neither rust nor lose its shine.
- It’s the only yellow metal, and one of the densest/heaviest of all metals in the Periodic Table.
- Gold is rarer than diamonds.
- It is odorless, tasteless, hyperallergenic, and not toxic to humans when eaten.
Troy Ounces of Gold Around the United States
First, when we talk about ounces with respect to gold, we mean troy ounces. A troy ounce is 1.1 regular ounces. A standard gold bar weighs 400 troy ounces or 27.4 pounds.
Fort Knox is not the only place in the US with a big horde of gold.
- The US Mint at West Point holds 54 million troy ounces.
- Fort Knox holds 147.3 million ounces.
- The Federal Reserve Bank of New York is a global depository where both the US and other countries keep gold for various Central Bank and Trade purposes. It holds (as of October 2025) 13.38 million troy ounces in a massive vault below the Federal Reserve Bank of NY on Maiden Lane in Lower Manhattan.
Gold Karats
Pure gold is 24 karats. However, it is so soft that most gold jewelry includes alloys for strength. 75% pure gold is 18 karat, whereas 14 karat gold is approximately 58% pure.
On November 19th, 2025, an 18-karat gold toilet sold at Sotheby’s for $12 million.
Panning for Gold in the United States
Alluvial gold is the gold found in riverbeds when panning. Here are six places you can pan for gold for free or at minimal cost in the U.S.:
- Marshall Gold State Park in CA
- Libby Creek Recreation Area in MT
- Cache Creek in CO
- Alabama Gold Camp in AL
- Reed Gold Mine in NC
More Questions About Investing in Gold?
Does investing in gold intrigue you? If it does, what questions do you have?
As a reminder, Investors should, as with all investment decisions, take great care before buying. Past performance is no indication of future returns.
There have been many scams surrounding gold where unscrupulous sales representatives try to scare investors or pressure them to buy with inaccurate claims, such as imminent market crashes or government confiscation of other assets. Scammers try to cheat buyers by selling fake gold or inaccurate weights.
Buying shares in companies with no working mine is very risky. Mining shares have risks beyond the price of gold. For example, the mine could collapse, there could be environmental lawsuits, labor strikes, safety concerns, and the miner could run out of money before the mine is even built.
These are some, but not all, of the risks involved with buying gold and stocks of gold mining firms.
Thanks for reading!
Additional Resources for Gold Facts:
>> 50 Dazzling Facts about Gold
>> 30 facts about Gold that you may not know
Image credits:
Rembrandt van Rijn, Old Man with a Gold Chain, 1631, Oil on panel, Art Institute of Chicago
Gold medal of honour, anonymous, 1762; The medal was given by Jan Schreuder, Governor of Ceylon, to Joan Aalwis, the highest-ranking Ceylonese employed by the Dutch East India Company (VOC), and the governor’s close adviser on Ceylon. He continued to promote the VOC’s interests during the war between the Dutch and the Kingdom of Kandy. The company thanks him for his loyalty, particularly during the recent disturbances. Rijks Museum.
Note:
This blog article is intended for general informational purposes only. Nothing in it should be construed as, and may not be used in connection with, an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy or hold, an interest in any security or investment product.