Read this before you invest in a Pool of gold account

One of the less expensive to buy and store money and physical gold is with unattributed (or pool) storage. With non-allocated storage, a dealer holds metal which is owned by its customers, but without identifying any particular piece of metal belonging to a particular client.
The advantages of this method are considerable: you can avoid the risks inherent in storing metal yourself (lost transport, fire and theft); You can buy or sell a few ounces of gold and money at a time. escape you big bid - ask spreads associated with coins and small bars. and perhaps more importantly, storage is usually free.
To provide these benefits, a precious metals dealer buys and sells small quantities of gold and silver to and from customers throughout the business day. When he needs more metal, it will be to buy it in the wholesale market. Or when the metal dealer more than she wants to carry on his own account (because customers have been net sellers), it will unload the excess in the wholesale market.
Many dealerships that offer non-allocated storage can accommodate customers who want to transform their metal bars or coins and take delivery. The dealer will charge a so-called "tax of manufacturing" for this service. The dealer did pick up a hammer and make bars or parts that the customer wants; instead of this, fee represents the price difference between bars purchase 100 ounces or more and purchase of small bars or coins.
Non-allocated storage is an interesting option, this is why we recommended subscribers to Casey for a part of their gold and silver holdings. Of course, there is nothing such as a free lunch, so we do not want anyone to rely too heavily on storage not assigned or any dealer who offers him. Here are some of the things that could go wrong.Wholesale of fraud. A dealer could be a 100% hoax. He may be not the metal that the customers have paid, in which case customers would get injured. The incumbent would commit a crime to go to jail forever, but it would be easier to dispose of them, perhaps for many years with storage not assigned with allocated storage. A customer who has purchased the metal in allocated storage can visit his gold or silver and verify serial on bars. A customer who has purchased metals in non-allocated storage can allow a tour of the Chapel, but all will see is a whole lotta of gold and a whole lotta money.
Employee embezzlement of funds. An honest dealer could have a dishonest employee. If the financial controls of the concessionaire lax, the employee could siphon off the coast of metal for himself or for a southerner. Or, if the physical checks on the lax dealer, the employee may swap false true bars. If the diversion of funds exceeded the net value of the dealer over his insurance clients will get injured.
Poor books. Gold and silver in storage not allocated is legally the property of clients of the dealer, and not to the dealer himself. If the dealer is bankrupt, the metal is not therefore available to creditors of the dealer. Clients of a bankrupt dealer should be able to collect their metal and walk away unscathed. This is how it should work. But if there are problems with the accounting of the trader, the metal that the concessionaire and its customers thoughts was stored non-attributed can be to win. Clients would fight against the creditors of the dealer to protect - and they could lose.
Time of manufacture. When the retail interest in gold warms up, a large part of the application is for coins and small bars. This can lead to a temporary shortage of coins and small bars which makes it impossible for a dealer welcome clients who want to transform their gold unallocated into small pieces and take delivery. If such a thing happens when you want to convert and take delivery, you have to wait. It would be a small problem compared to losing part of your gold, but it would be a problem.
We offer these warnings, not because the non-allocated storage is a poor choice, but because you will be better if you understand what evil could turn. It is as a warning of possible side effects, what is now the standard with any other drug. The warning is not a reason not to use the drug; This is a reason to use the right dose and be attentive to the signs of distress.
We cannot say exactly how many storage not allocated metal would be too. The appropriate dose is up to you. But there is a starting point. If you have more than 20% of your gold or silver in storage not allocated to a dealer, consider moving some of them. It could be the subject of another distributor, or you can convert a part of it to pieces and take delivery.
This might be a chore, but we suggest what you are going to the penalty, even if the dealer is came very recommandé, even if your experience with the dealer was fully satisfactory, and even if you see no sign of trouble. There is a difference between an event being very little likelihood that an event is impossible. Sooner or later, an investor who neglects this difference gets hurt.
[See our hot-off-the-press annual survey forecast Gold edition gold BIG, where we interview 16 experts of gold, fund managers and the authors, with Doug Casey, what to expect for 2011 and how invest.] [It is available without risk here].


Ed. Note: I am a research affiliate Casey and the Subscriber.

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