Buying Gold Bullion

[noodle]

I have been to several gold shops around Pattaya attempting to buy gold bullion bars (1-5 Baht). In all cases the reply was either 'no have, need to order' or a 'charge' (1000Baht per 1Baht in one case) in excess of the window bullion sell price.

So my question is has anyone bought any bullion recently?

What was the 'charge'?

Where is the shop?

[ThaiBob]

Thought we had a thread like this recently but anyway Aurora gold shop is in all the malls and they sell what you want.

http://www.aurora.co.th/investment.php

[Regyai]

China town in BKK, you get window price with no extra charges on 10 baht bars and up

[thrilled]

I agree with Regyal.Head to Bangkok Chinatown ,yaraphat rd.Really the true place to buy gold in Thailand.

Don't know about buying 24k.99.99% The shops sell a lot of 23k 96.5% pure Happy hunting.

[JesseFrank]

There is a shop on Sukhumvit, between central and south pattaya in the building that also has the Mc Donalds, which has a sign with gold bullions outside.

Anyone any idea what that shop is ?

[Suradit69]

I regularly buy 2 baht gold bars, from any of several shops on Pattaya Tai, including Thong Dee. They usually have the bars available, sometimes 1 baht, 5 baht or 10 baht as well. They may not be familiar with the English word "bullion."

The price is set in Bangkok several times a day based on world market prices. Usually when I buy or sell they telephone Bangkok for the current price. Sometimes it can be quite volatile, but the prices I've been charged are always what is posted as shown below. There is a service or design commission charge added or subtracted from the market price depending on whether you are buying or selling. It would not be Baht 1000 for one baht weight, but the price shown in the window may not be current. There have been price movements of 250 baht or more during some recent days.

The bars usually have the design/hallmark of one of several dealers in China Town Bangkok.

http://www.goldbarsworldwide.com/PDF/NB_1_BarsFromThailand.pdf

This one is from Chin Hua Heng.

bullion n. (gold)

ทองแท่ง tɔɔng-​tɛ̂ng 

classifiers: ก้อน gɔ̂ɔn  (lump), ชิ้น chín  (piece)

Edited March 12, 2014 by Suradit69

[bobbin]

Hmmm. Gold bullion. Thailand. Not a good combination..... for selling .

Last year I sold 5 Canadian Maple Leaf coins. 1 troy ounce each. 99.999% gold.

I sold 3 here in Pattaya at different times to the same shop. He accepted that they were real and only did the rub on a stone test the first time. He always offered less than spot price on the day. The difference was as much as Bt1000.

I sold one in Bangkok's Chinatown at the most famous shop in Thailand. What a production! He obviously thought I was going to scam him. First he put the coin in his little oven and heated it with a blowtorch to soften it. He then bent it back and forth a bit. After that he brought out the chemicals to test reaction. At that point he offered me Bt,1000 less than spot. After I agreed, and money had changed hands, he used a pair of cutters to practically cut the coin in half... When I told him he had destroyed the commercial value of the coin (not to mention disrespecting Queen Elizabeth!)and could no longer demand the premium on top of gold value, he said he was in the gold business not the coin business, and would be melting to make jewelry.

Buying Thai-marked bars would remove these irritants but my impression is that Thai gold shops are jewelers dealing in gold, not bullion dealers.

Apparently it is possible to buy Swiss UBS bullion in Bangkok but I imagine selling would involve the same BS that I went through.

[noodle]

 

Thought we had a thread like this recently but anyway Aurora gold shop is in all the malls and they sell what you want.

http://www.aurora.co.th/investment.php

 

Thanks, I came across one under BigC on Pattaya Tai yesterday, I guess it was Aurora since they had Aurora 1Baht and half Baht bars in stock. Price was spot+250 for 1Baht and spot+200 for half Baht.

[ThaiBob]

 

Thought we had a thread like this recently but anyway Aurora gold shop is in all the malls and they sell what you want.

http://www.aurora.co.th/investment.php

 

Thanks, I came across one under BigC on Pattaya Tai yesterday, I guess it was Aurora since they had Aurora 1Baht and half Baht bars in stock. Price was spot+250 for 1Baht and spot+200 for half Baht.

Good. I know that shop well.

[ciaociao]

There is a shop on Sukhumvit, between central and south pattaya in the building that also has the Mc Donalds, which has a sign with gold bullions outside.

Anyone any idea what that shop is ?

Is there a gold store in the festival mall on beach road?

[ThaiBob]

There is a shop on Sukhumvit, between central and south pattaya in the building that also has the Mc Donalds, which has a sign with gold bullions outside.

Anyone any idea what that shop is ?

Is there a gold store in the festival mall on beach road?

Yes, in the basement including Aurora.

[ciaociao]

China town in BKK, you get window price with no extra charges on 10 baht bars and up

Would extra charges be considered a commission? On a ten baht ingot what would be a fair extra charge?

[Regyai]

China town in BKK, you get window price with no extra charges on 10 baht bars and up

Would extra charges be considered a commission? On a ten baht ingot what would be a fair extra charge?

That would depend on how much you are prepared to swallow

When you can get them free of any commission elsewhere

Pattaya emporiums would be looking for 1K or 2K baht on top of daily price on a 10baht bar (if you can find one with the stock - mostly the 1 & 2 bahts in Pattaya)

[noodle]

Suradit99 and others,

thanks.

Update, I did a tour from Sai Song up to TukCom along the rhs of Tai. There are 5? gold shops, it was a bit after 17:30 and some were closed.

99 Diamond has 10,5,2,1 Baht bars. They want spot+300 for the 10Baht and spot+500 for the 1Baht. For buy back they would call Bangkok for price.

Tweesin was closed, Rung Charoen and Proud don't sell bars, Thonghen (spelling?) said only to order.

[LarryLEB]

A GUIDE to BUYING GOLD in PATTAYA

In this guide, I will explain what you need to know when buying gold in Pattaya. Note that all Pattaya gold shops sell Thai gold jewellery. Some, however, do not sell gold bars and coins.

1. Understand the gold prices of Pattaya gold shops.

• For this guide, assume that the posted prices in the shop window are as follows:

Sell Baht (B)19,700

Buy B19,600

Jewellery Buy B18,620(the wording will be in Thai language)

• The above prices will be based on the world gold price and may be changed several times per day to reflect changes in the world price.
• For whatever reason, many gold shops are too lazy to post this info on their windows!

2. Decide whether you want to buy gold bars, coins, or jewellery.

• Gold bars for sale include Thai gold bars (96.5% gold) and foreign gold bars (usually 99.99% gold). Gold coins can vary in gold content. Thai gold jewellery is 96.5% gold.
• As a general rule, bars will be the least expensive to buy; jewellery, more expensive; and coins, the most expensive.

3. THAI Gold Bars: You are the buyer...

• The most common Thai gold bar weights are 0.25, 0.50, one baht, two baht, five baht, and 10 baht.

• The basic cost to buy a one-baht weight THAI gold bar would be B19,700 + fee. The fee will be between B100 and B250 (avoid shops that charge B300), depending on the bar size and the total baht weight quantity that you buy.
  • Example: You buy only one, one-baht Thai gold bar. You would pay 19,700 + 250 = B19,950.
  • Example: You buy 10, one-baht Thai gold bars. You would likely pay 19,700 + 150 = B19,850 for each bar. Total purchase = B198,500. I say “likely” because the fee you pay depends on whether you are a good customer with that shop. (Also depends on how good you are at negotiating!)
  • Example: You buy 4, five-baht Thai gold bars. I made this exact purchase a few weeks ago. I paid (B19,700 x 20) + (20 x B100) = B396,000 total. Note that I paid only B100 per one-baht weight purchased (why? Large total purchase + good customer)
• Note that if you are buying bars of less than one baht weight, the fee is charged per bar, not per one baht weight.

• Example: You buy four, 0.25 baht bars. You would pay 19,700 + (4 x 250) = B20,700.

4. THAI Gold Bars: You are the seller...

• This one is straightforward: You will receive, as the seller, the BUY price posted in the window. In the above case, you receive B19,600 for each one-baht weight you sell.

• Example: You sell 3, two-baht bars. You would receive 6 x B19,600 = B117,600.

5. FOREIGN Gold Bars

• Foreign gold bars will contain other than 96.5% gold content. The price per gram will be based on the world gold price, in U.S.$, then converted to Thai baht. THEN, a 5% surcharge will be added!
  • Example: You buy a one troy ounce PAMP (brand name) gold bar. A one troy ounce gold bar contains 2.07356512 baht weight of gold. You would pay (B19,700 x 2.07356512) + (B250fee x 2) = B41,349 (to nearest baht + 5% of that = B43,416.
• Basically, I DO NOT BUY foreign bars! The 5% surcharge makes them too expensive. You DO NOT RECOVER THE SURCHARGE if you sell the foreign bar to the shop!

6. FOREIGN Gold Coins

• As with foreign gold bars, you must pay a 5% surcharge. Therefore, do not buy! (I unfortunately learned this early on when I purchased a South African Krugerrand).

7. THAI Jewellery

• Thai jewellery is produced in Thai gold. Larger pieces of jewellery, such as bracelets and neck chains, are produced in multiples of one-baht weight. These pieces will be tagged with their baht weight. Smaller pieces, such as rings, earrings, etc., are tagged with their gram weight. (One baht weight of gold contains 14.71 grams of gold.)
• When you purchase Thai gold jewellery, you will pay the gold price, PLUS a Fabrication Fee. Typical fabrication fees may be B650 or B750 (this fee covers the labour costs of making the item).

• Example: You buy a one-baht weight bracelet. You would pay B19,700 + (let’s say) B650 = B20,350.
• Example: You sell the same one-baht weight bracelet. You receive B18,620 (the jewellery buy price shown near the start of this guide). You will have lost 8.5% of your purchase price (assuming the prices have not changed).

8. Some Tips

• Always check the internet to find the current gold price before you visit the gold shop. The world price may, of course, change before you arrive at the shop.
• I am aware of at least one Pattaya gold shop that is notorious for overcharging. Some weeks ago, I priced some bars at one of these shops ... they were asking 400Baht above the current acceptable gold price. AVOID such cheaters!
• Always observe the shop’s employee weigh your purchase. A one-baht gold bar will weigh 15.244 grams (and contains 14.71 grams of gold). The difference in these two numbers represents the alloy metals contained in 96.5% Thai gold.
• Always get a detailed receipt from the shop.
• I always have the shop “chop” my gold bar with their chop (for any bar I buy above one baht in weight). The “chop” is the shop’s seal carved into a small metal chisel. I have the shop hammer this chiselled chop into the gold bar. The bar is thereby identified as having been sold by that specific shop. Note, however, that you can buy in one shop and later sell in that shop or another shop.

Edited August 29, 2014 by LarryLEB

[tropo]

Hmmm. Gold bullion. Thailand. Not a good combination..... for selling .

Last year I sold 5 Canadian Maple Leaf coins. 1 troy ounce each. 99.999% gold.

I sold 3 here in Pattaya at different times to the same shop. He accepted that they were real and only did the rub on a stone test the first time. He always offered less than spot price on the day. The difference was as much as Bt1000.

I sold one in Bangkok's Chinatown at the most famous shop in Thailand. What a production! He obviously thought I was going to scam him. First he put the coin in his little oven and heated it with a blowtorch to soften it. He then bent it back and forth a bit. After that he brought out the chemicals to test reaction. At that point he offered me Bt,1000 less than spot. After I agreed, and money had changed hands, he used a pair of cutters to practically cut the coin in half... When I told him he had destroyed the commercial value of the coin (not to mention disrespecting Queen Elizabeth!)and could no longer demand the premium on top of gold value, he said he was in the gold business not the coin business, and would be melting to make jewelry.

Buying Thai-marked bars would remove these irritants but my impression is that Thai gold shops are jewelers dealing in gold, not bullion dealers.

Apparently it is possible to buy Swiss UBS bullion in Bangkok but I imagine selling would involve the same BS that I went through.

Yikes! What if he told you he didn't want it after he'd destroyed it in the oven?

[tropo]

8. Some Tips

• Always check the internet to find the current gold price before you visit the gold shop. The world price may, of course, change before you arrive at the shop.
• I am aware of at least one Pattaya gold shop that is notorious for overcharging. Some weeks ago, I priced some bars at one of these shops ... they were asking 400Baht above the current acceptable gold price. AVOID such cheaters!
• Always observe the shop’s employee weigh your purchase. A one-baht gold bar will weigh 15.244 grams (and contains 14.71 grams of gold). The difference in these two numbers represents the alloy metals contained in 96.5% Thai gold.
• Always get a detailed receipt from the shop.
• I always have the shop “chop” my gold bar with their chop (for any bar I buy above one baht in weight). The “chop” is the shop’s seal carved into a small metal chisel. I have the shop hammer this chiselled chop into the gold bar. The bar is thereby identified as having been sold by that specific shop. Note, however, that you can buy in one shop and later sell in that shop or another shop.

One baht of thai gold weighs 15.16 grams officially, but most shops only measure it to one decimal place.

Thai baht jewelry is now mostly being sold at 750 plus now for fabrication and there's more. Some shops are quoting over 1000 baht per piece of jewelry (Aurora) or per baht if 1 baht or over.

It gets even worse. That busy shop in Big C Sukhumwit (not Aurora, the other one) is charging 750 baht fabrication (they call it "making") per 1/2 baht weight of jewelry. They quote 1500 baht and then give you a discount so you feel better about being ripped off, but you still pay over 1000 baht for a 1 baht piece of jewelry. I don't understand why this shop is always crowded with Thais. Perhaps they only charge foreigners with the high fabrication costs, because they don't expect us to buy and sell frequently.

[khunjamesjohnson]

My Thai friend buys gold bars and insists on the shop in Chinatown or their branch at SriNakarin.

[Ling Kae]

Are you allowed to buy Thai Gold Bars and take it out of the country? Wouldn't be a bad idea taking 1 baht of gold a year out and building up the pot at home. Any problems with doing that?

[OMGImInPattaya]

<p> A GUIDE to BUYING GOLD in PATTAYAIn this guide, I will explain what you need to know when buying gold in Pattaya. Note that all Pattaya gold shops sell Thai gold jewellery. Some, however, do not sell gold bars and coins. 1. Understand the gold prices of Pattaya gold shops.

• For this guide, assume that the posted prices in the shop window are as follows:

8]Sell Baht (B)19,700

8]Buy B19,600

8]Jewellery Buy B18,620(the wording will be in Thai language)

• The above prices will be based on the world gold price and may be changed several times per day to reflect changes in the world price.
• For whatever reason, many gold shops are too lazy to post this info on their windows!

2. Decide whether you want to buy gold bars, coins, or jewellery.

• Gold bars for sale include Thai gold bars (96.5% gold) and foreign gold bars (usually 99.99% gold). Gold coins can vary in gold content. Thai gold jewellery is 96.5% gold.
• As a general rule, bars will be the least expensive to buy; jewellery, more expensive; and coins, the most expensive.

3. THAI Gold Bars: You are the buyer...

• The most common Thai gold bar weights are 0.25, 0.50, one baht, two baht, five baht, and 10 baht.

• The basic cost to buy a one-baht weight THAI gold bar would be B19,700 + fee. The fee will be between B100 and B250 (avoid shops that charge B300), depending on the bar size and the total baht weight quantity that you buy.
  • Example: You buy only one, one-baht Thai gold bar. You would pay 19,700 + 250 = B19,950.
  • Example: You buy 10, one-baht Thai gold bars. You would likely pay 19,700 + 150 = B19,850 for each bar. Total purchase = B198,500. I say likely because the fee you pay depends on whether you are a good customer with that shop. (Also depends on how good you are at negotiating!)
  • Example: You buy 4, five-baht Thai gold bars. I made this exact purchase a few weeks ago. I paid (B19,700 x 20) + (20 x B100) = B396,000 total. Note that I paid only B100 per one-baht weight purchased (why? Large total purchase + good customer)
• Note that if you are buying bars of less than one baht weight, the fee is charged per bar, not per one baht weight.

• Example: You buy four, 0.25 baht bars. You would pay 19,700 + (4 x 250) = B20,700.

4. THAI Gold Bars: You are the seller...

• This one is straightforward: You will receive, as the seller, the BUY price posted in the window. In the above case, you receive B19,600 for each one-baht weight you sell.

• Example: You sell 3, two-baht bars. You would receive 6 x B19,600 = B117,600.

5. FOREIGN Gold Bars

• Foreign gold bars will contain other than 96.5% gold content. The price per gram will be based on the world gold price, in U.S.$, then converted to Thai baht. THEN, a 5% surcharge will be added!
  • Example: You buy a one troy ounce PAMP (brand name) gold bar. A one troy ounce gold bar contains 2.07356512 baht weight of gold. You would pay (B19,700 x 2.07356512) + (B250fee x 2) = B41,349 (to nearest baht + 5% of that = B43,416.
• Basically, I DO NOT BUY foreign bars! The 5% surcharge makes them too expensive. You DO NOT RECOVER THE SURCHARGE if you sell the foreign bar to the shop!

6. FOREIGN Gold Coins

• As with foreign gold bars, you must pay a 5% surcharge. Therefore, do not buy! (I unfortunately learned this early on when I purchased a South African Krugerrand).

7. THAI Jewellery

• Thai jewellery is produced in Thai gold. Larger pieces of jewellery, such as bracelets and neck chains, are produced in multiples of one-baht weight. These pieces will be tagged with their baht weight. Smaller pieces, such as rings, earrings, etc., are tagged with their gram weight. (One baht weight of gold contains 14.71 grams of gold.)
• When you purchase Thai gold jewellery, you will pay the gold price, PLUS a Fabrication Fee. Typical fabrication fees may be B650 or B750 (this fee covers the labour costs of making the item).

• Example: You buy a one-baht weight bracelet. You would pay B19,700 + (lets say) B650 = B20,350.
• Example: You sell the same one-baht weight bracelet. You receive B18,620 (the jewellery buy price shown near the start of this guide). You will have lost 8.5% of your purchase price (assuming the prices have not changed).

8. Some Tips

• Always check the internet to find the current gold price before you visit the gold shop. The world price may, of course, change before you arrive at the shop.
• I am aware of at least one Pattaya gold shop that is notorious for overcharging. Some weeks ago, I priced some bars at one of these shops ... they were asking 400Baht above the current acceptable gold price. AVOID such cheaters!
• Always observe the shops employee weigh your purchase. A one-baht gold bar will weigh 15.244 grams (and contains 14.71 grams of gold). The difference in these two numbers represents the alloy metals contained in 96.5% Thai gold.
• Always get a detailed receipt from the shop.
• I always have the shop chop my gold bar with their chop (for any bar I buy above one baht in weight). The chop is the shops seal carved into a small metal chisel. I have the shop hammer this chiselled chop into the gold bar. The bar is thereby identified as having been sold by that specific shop. Note, however, that you can buy in one shop and later sell in that shop or another shop.

Interesting and informative information. A couple questions:

Why do you have your bars "chopped"? What's the point?

Is there any way to verify the gold content of a bar other than having it assayed? How does one know they are getting Thai or international standard gold and not 14, 18, or 22 carat gold?

How do you transport and store your gold. And relatedly, do you ever feel nervous walking out of a shop with 5-10 baht of gold on your person? Do you take any precautions to ensure you are not followed by any gold shop staff or other suspicious types hanging around outside the shops?

[tropo]

My Thai friend buys gold bars and insists on the shop in Chinatown or their branch at SriNakarin.

I fail to see the value of travelling to Bangkok to buy gold. Can you ask your Thai friend why he buys them in Bangkok. If there is a monetary advantage, I'm sure it's very small unless perhaps you're buying millions.

I have been to Chinatown gold shops. On the day I was there there was only one busy shop where people were 2 deep at the counter. I couldn't figure out why. Perhaps they had a better buy back rate than the other shops.

This is definitely something to consider when buying gold. There seems to be quite a big difference in buy back rates in different shops. Aurora had the best buy back rate by far, but they also had the biggest fabrication costs I've seen in gold shops. I also noted that shops with high buy back rates often give the worst buy-back rates for gold jewelry not purchased from them. They make a lot of money buying jewelry from other shops.

[IAMHERE]

Are you allowed to buy Thai Gold Bars and take it out of the country? Wouldn't be a bad idea taking 1 baht of gold a year out and building up the pot at home. Any problems with doing that?

Good question, I have several thousand dollars US that I could use to buy gold in Pattaya. Will the US customs try to take it away from me ? Charge $$$ to bring it back in? Customs and homeland are probably anti gold, the bullies.

[thrilled]

Gold shops in China town in Bangkok will not buy gold that has been bought in other shops in Thailand.They say not real.So maybe A little hustle but definitely go to yaraphat rd to buy and sell gold in Thailand.

[Jack Mountain]

Is only Cash accepted or can you pay in other ways?

[sikishrory]

On 3/14/2014 at 8:49 AM, bobbin said:

Hmmm. Gold bullion. Thailand. Not a good combination..... for selling .

Last year I sold 5 Canadian Maple Leaf coins. 1 troy ounce each. 99.999% gold.

I sold 3 here in Pattaya at different times to the same shop. He accepted that they were real and only did the rub on a stone test the first time. He always offered less than spot price on the day. The difference was as much as Bt1000.

I sold one in Bangkok's Chinatown at the most famous shop in Thailand. What a production! He obviously thought I was going to scam him. First he put the coin in his little oven and heated it with a blowtorch to soften it. He then bent it back and forth a bit. After that he brought out the chemicals to test reaction. At that point he offered me Bt,1000 less than spot. After I agreed, and money had changed hands, he used a pair of cutters to practically cut the coin in half... When I told him he had destroyed the commercial value of the coin (not to mention disrespecting Queen Elizabeth!)and could no longer demand the premium on top of gold value, he said he was in the gold business not the coin business, and would be melting to make jewelry.

Buying Thai-marked bars would remove these irritants but my impression is that Thai gold shops are jewelers dealing in gold, not bullion dealers.

Apparently it is possible to buy Swiss UBS bullion in Bangkok but I imagine selling would involve the same BS that I went through.

All the bending, chemicals and torching. Does that not significantly damage the coin?

[sikishrory]

I want to buy a 5 baht chain. I will prob go to hua seng heng in chinatown but as above I am wondering what the significant difference is to make the journey accross Bangkok just to shop there rather than shops in pattaya.

Also wondering best way to pay as it will be around 100k and my SCB card has a 20k daily limit I believe.

Something else I noticed is hua seng heng will actually deliver it to you same day within bangkok area.

[Oink]

On ‎10‎/‎28‎/‎2014 at 2:26 PM, IAMHERE said:

Good question, I have several thousand dollars US that I could use to buy gold in Pattaya. Will the US customs try to take it away from me ? Charge $$$ to bring it back in? Customs and homeland are probably anti gold, the bullies.

VAT (sales tax) is not charged on gold in Thailand. If you were taking the gold to the UK and it was declared/found, you would be liable for 20% (VAT) on the value of the gold. If it is 96.5% good luck on trying to sell it at a future date.

They only recognise 9, 18 & 24 carat. 96.5% or 23 carat is what they call "yellow metal" and will only offer a very low scrap gold price.

Edited May 12, 2019 by Oink

[DingDongLing]

gold is old

 

crypto is new.

 

Recommend ethereum 

[Rimmer]

Yes and this is a five year old topic

//CLOSED//