Gold investment savings account

Recently I have caught the gold fever in the form of gold investment.

The question is whether to hold physical gold or open a gold investment savings account.

Even though I feel the spot rate of USD 1,346 per Troy ounce of gold too high for investment purpose, I am quite optimistic about the rumor of coming market correction.

The last price correction took place in 2008.

It is high time for another market correction to reduce the price of gold.

I hope that the spot rate will fall as low as USD1,000 per Troy ounce of gold.  Even if the spot rate falls below USD1,100, it will be a good price for me to enter the market.

On a recent trip to Malaysia, I enter the Maybank branch to query about the purchase of gold coin.

However, after discussing with the bank officer in charge, I realize that opening a gold investment savings account is a better idea.

There is no monthly charge for account maintenance with Maybank.

The minimum sum for opening the gold investment savings account is just 5 grams of gold.  Even at the current rate, 5 grams of gold is affordable to most people.

If I have an existing gold investment savings account, and I want to increase my holding, the minimum purchase is 1 gram of gold.


There is no fee deducted for dormant account as well.

That means I can keep the gold investment savings account for ten years, without incurring any fee or charge.

If I want to liquidate the holdings, I can close the account.  I can either choose to withdraw physical gold, by paying a premium over the spot rate, or I can sell the gold back to the bank at the prevailing daily rate.

I think opening a gold investment savings account with Maybank in Malaysia is better than opening a gold investment savings account with UOB in Singapore.

The UOB gold investment account comes with certain fees.

According to the website of UOB:

“An administrative fee (in grams of gold) as low as 0.12 gm per month or 0.25% p.a. on the highest balance per month, whichever is higher. The fee is subjected to GST, which will be deducted from your account in grams of gold also.
An administrative charge of $30 for the closure of the account within 6 months. The fee is subjected to GST.”

That means if I keep the gold investment savings account for ten years, I would potentially lose the value of a few grams of gold.

The fee is subjected to GST, that means I lose out even more.

While gold investment is a good choice for the long term, the fees and various deduction is a cause for concern.

I think it is worthwhile to travel all the way to Malaysia, and open the account with Maybank.  The terms and conditions are more acceptable.

Maybank allows up to 4 persons in a joint account.  That means it is a good investment tool for the whole family.  The parents can get the children to join in the scheme and enjoy the fruitage of gold investment.

As for the purchase of the gold coin in Malaysia, it is not a good idea, since I have to carry it across the custom, and pay the custom duty.