What is a Gold Krugerrands?

There are several types of gold coins and just one of the many available on the world market for collecting and purchase is the South African Krugerrand. Although there is no fixed size or weight for many gold coins, gold coins are wonderful collector’s items and excellent investments. The gold Krugerrand is just one of these collectors type gold coins.

The South African Krugerrand was first minted in 1967 as a way to draw the world’s attention to the growing South African gold marketplace. The coins are accepted as legal tender in South Africa, but are not really intended to be currency. Krugerrands fall into a category that is called a medal-coin.

The value of a Krugerrand is determined by the market value of its gold face content. The Krugerrand contains exactly one troy ounce of gold and was the first gold coin to actually certify its precise weight for exchange. By minting the Krugerrand, South Africa gave American gold collectors a way to legally retain gold for collecting and investing purposes.  The United States in 1967 had made the ownership of gold bullion illegal but the laws allowed for the ownership of foreign gold coins to be held by US residents.

The Krugerrand was specifically created to tap this hungry American market for gold coins and became a sought after coin by many Americans who understood the value and investment protection that gold afforded at that time and affords today. During the 70’s and 80’s many countries banned the import of Krugerrands due to apartheid in South Africa. However now due to political changes in South African the Krugerrand is now widely collected and exchanged worldwide.

Today Krugerrands are produced in a variety of sizes and sold at premiums no higher than 1% of the market price of gold. This is a change from the original selling model which allowed for Krugerrands to be sold at up to 5% over the market price of gold.

Other popular gold medal-coins to collect and use for investment are the American Eagle gold coin and the British Sovereign, and Australian Sovereign.

If you find that you have gold coins that you would like to turn into cash Cash for Gold is the first place to consider. With their insured estimating process, you can securely send your gold coins for review and pricing. You may find that you have more financial assets than you had thought in your collection. There is no risk and if you choose not to accept the price for your gold from Cash for Gold, your coins are simply returned to you promptly and insured for safe delivery throughout the process.