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Overview
You can buy and sell physically-backed gold directly in your Wealthsimple account. You can purchase fractional amounts of gold for as little as $1. When you buy gold through Wealthsimple, you will have fractional ownership of physical bullion held at one of Wealthsimple's storage facilities, which act as custodians for the asset. This feature gives you 24/7 access to real-time gold trading and lets you hold gold within your existing Wealthsimple accounts, without needing a separate platform.
How to buy and sell physical gold
You can buy and sell gold in any of your self-directed accounts and non-registered accounts. The minimum purchase amount is $1 worth of gold. Currently, there's no maximum limit; gold can be traded like any other asset on the platform.
Follow the steps below to buy or sell gold in the Wealthsimple app:
- Log in to the Wealthsimple app
- Tap the Search icon at the bottom of the screen and type "Gold"
- Select GOLD under Commodities
- Select the self-directed account in which you'd like to trade gold
- Tap Trade
- Choose Buy or Sell
- Enter the dollar amount or weight of gold you want to trade
- Tap Review
- Tap Submit
Since gold trades 24/7, all orders will be market orders that are filled instantly, making order cancellation unlikely.
Fee structure and storage
For fees related to trading gold in your Wealthsimple account, please refer to the Precious Metals Trading section of our Fee Schedule for Self-Directed Accounts. The spread charged for orders covers trading, storage, and operational costs.
Physical bullion is held at one of Wealthsimple's storage facilities. All storage facilities are located in Canada and approved by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO).
Frequently asked questions
What currency is gold quoted in?
The spot price and associated trading fees are in CAD - no FX conversion needed.
Does CIPF cover my gold?
Your accounts are protected by the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF) up to $1M per account. Precious metals purchased and held in account with Wealthsimple are covered under CIPF.
Which market does gold trade in, and what are the trading hours?
Gold trades over-the-counter (OTC) through a network of banks, dealers, refiners, and brokers. The "spot market" for gold is where buyers and sellers trade gold for immediate (or near-immediate) settlement, usually within 1 to 2 business days. When you buy or sell gold using Wealthsimple, you're paying the current price in the spot market.
Gold trades globally across time zones. Because the OTC spot market is decentralized, there's almost always a counterparty somewhere awake and trading. However, in practice, the gold market:
- Opens at 6:00 pm Eastern Time (ET) on Sunday evening, which is Monday morning in Asia.
- Runs continuously through the week.
- Closes late Friday (around 5:00 pm ET).
You can place orders 24/7, but orders placed between 5:00 pm on Fridays and 6:00 pm on Sundays (all times ET) will receive an indicative price.
Where is my gold stored?
Your gold is stored securely in facilities including the Royal Canadian Mint and Brinks with $0 storage fees. We use segregated program-level storage, which means your gold is held in trust for you, with the gold of other Wealthsimple clients, and kept separate and apart from Wealthsimple's assets, the assets of our storage partners, and the assets held by our storage partners for other parties. Your specific ownership amount is precisely tracked in our records.
What is segregated program-level storage?
Segregated program-level storage (also called segregated omnibus storage) means that all client gold is held together, as a group. While individual clients' gold is not physically separated from each other, it's completely separated from Wealthsimple's assets, the assets of our storage partners, and the assets held by our storage partners for other parties. We maintain detailed records of each client's exact ownership within this allocation, ensuring your gold holdings are accurately tracked and accounted for at all times.
Can I sell my gold on Wealthsimple?
Yes, you can sell your physically backed gold 24/7 directly in the app.
Can I change or cancel a gold order?
Since gold trades 24/7, all orders will be market orders and filled instantly. There are no reversals, corrections, improvements, or cancellations on any filled trades under any circumstances.
How is gold taxed in Canada?
For non-registered accounts, gold is taxed just like stocks or ETFs in Canada. If you sell your gold for a profit, the profit is considered a capital gain, and only half of that gain is taxable. If you sell your gold at a loss, you can use that loss to offset other capital gains.
What's the difference between trading physical gold and a gold ETF or stock?
With physical gold, you have fractional ownership of the physical bullion, which is stored securely. With an ETF or stock, you own a financial instrument that tracks the gold price, but have no entitlement to the physical underlying asset. With ETFs, you'll also be paying management fees.
Does Wealthsimple offer trading for other precious metals?
At launch, only gold is available. We're currently evaluating future expansion to other metals.
Can I set up recurring investments for gold?
No, recurring investments aren't supported for gold at this time.
Can I place any other order types besides market orders for gold?
No, we only support market orders for gold at this time.
Are in-kind transfers possible?
No. In-kind transfers aren't supported.
Disclaimer:
WSII is a registered investment dealer with the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization ("CIRO") and is subject to Canadian anti-money laundering laws. Clients are subject to Know-Your-Client (KYC) and other regulatory requirements. In some instances, WSII may need to reconfirm the client's identity or request additional information about a transaction. All orders must be conducted by the first party, and no order shall be made on behalf of another party (third party).
In addition, WSII is registered as a securities dealer, Money Services Business (MSB), and Dealer in Precious Metals and Stones (DPMS).
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