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was in 1933 (see Deadly Myth #6)
Deadly Myth #6: All Gold Can Be Confiscated During Crises
During the darkest days of the Great Depression in 1933, President Franklin D.
Roosevelt was desperate to stabilize the U.S. dollar from the ravages of a shrinking
economy. By executive order, Roosevelt confiscated U.S. gold coins from U.S.
citizens in exchange for paper currency notes, under the severe penalty of a $10,000
fine and a maximum 10year imprisonment for anyone who failed to cooperate.
Some historians believe this was the beginning of the “shrinking U.S. Dollar,” as
the government melted the majority of confiscated coins into bars and then
devalued the dollar, raising gold’s value by nearly 75%.
Today, some investors are weary of buying gold because they fear another
government confiscation during bad economic times. But they fail to realize that
not all gold was subject to government confiscation in 1933. In fact, certain types of
gold coins – namely, pre1933 numismatic gold coins – have never been confiscated
by the U.S. government and never will be.
Roosevelt’s 1933 executive order excluded “gold coins having a recognized special
value to collectors or rare and unusual coins,” which meant pre1933 numismatic
coins were exempt from government confiscation. And that’s doubly good news for
today’s investors. Number one, when you invest in numismatic gold coins, you
won’t have to worry about them ever being confiscated. Two, because the majority
of confiscated U.S. gold coins were melted into bars, any existing pre1933 U.S. gold
coins remaining today have both a “gold value” and a “scarcity” value because of
high investor demand and low supply.
Deadly Myth #7: Gold Is for Collectors, Not Investors
A number of our clients at Wholesale Direct Metals initially make the mistake of
referring to pre1933 numismatic coins as “collector” coins. While it’s true that
many people do collect numismatic coins as a hobby, it is severely limiting to think
of numismatic coins just in terms of their value to “collectors.” We call numismatic
coins “investmentgrade” coins because they are as durable, wellperforming and
wealthprotecting as any investment products on the market. And the fact that
they are also valuable to collectors means that they are scarce and maintain an
intrinsic premium value over gold bullion, all of which make numismatic coins a
great investment for anyone looking to grow their money and protect their wealth.
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