Last Friday marked the official beginning of the new gold market price fix, the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) Gold Price. The new price fix replaces the London Gold Fix, which had been in use since 1919, and was largely influenced by the Libor interest rate-rigging scandal from 2012 that had prompted regulatory bodies to seek a higher level of transparency.
The LBMA named the ICE Benchmark Administration as the new gold price benchmark operator, placing them in charge of administration and providing a price platform for the LBMA Gold Price. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange, in conjuction with Thomson Reuters, will administer the silver benchmark, and the London Metal Exchange will continue to produce prices for both platinum and palladium.
The new gold fix, initially set at $1,171.75, was determined by six participants after five rounds of auctioning. Previously, there were only four
financial buy online cialis institutions determining the gold fix, consisting of cheap viagra Barclays, HSBC, Bank of Nova Scotia and Societe order cialis Generale. They have now been joined by Goldman Sachs and UBS.
More participants are meant to increase the market’s trust in online Wellbutrin how gold prices are set. “The key question is, will users have the necessary confidence in the number?” Ross Norman, Sharps Pixley’s chief executive wondered. “My gut feeling is that, with six participants, yes is the answer.”
The introduction of http://onlineviagra-rxgeneric.com/ the LBMA Gold Price also marks a shift towards an electronic gold fix, meant to increase transparency and modernize the process. “Friday’s move to electronic auctions and record-keeping… should repair outside perceptions of London’s role in the market,” BullionVault.com’s head of research Adrian Ash hoped.
“It’s a natural progression to go down the route of an electronic, transparent mechanism,” former director for Deutsche Bank’s gold fixings Matthew Keen added. In 2014, Deutsche Bank gave up its seat in the gold fixing process after holding it for two decades.
While the new gold price fix definitely marks the end of one era and the beginning of another, early market reports have not shown any notable difference in precious metals dealings since the new fix went live.
Learn more about gold and how to protect your savings from Birch Gold Group’s YouTube profile.