Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coins
For those of you who want to invest in gold but want a convenient, small denomination that makes storage and transactions more convenient than large gold bars, there is always Canadian gold maple leaf coins. These gold coins also make the perfect luxury gift for family members or clients.
Available from major bullion dealers throughout the world, gold maple leaf coins typically trade at a small premium above the cost of gold. For example, on August 14, 2010, gold spot prices were $1,214.72 and Canadian gold maple leaf coins sold for between $1,252.70 and $1,299.51 at several major dealers.
Purity of Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coins
These gold coins are minted by the Royal Canadian Mint and is one of the purest gold coins in the world with a staggering gold content of .9999 purity, or 24k). Some Canadian gold maple leaf coins are even special issue editions with .99999 purity, meaning they contain virtually no base metals. Coins minted prior to 1982 have only .999 purity.
One of the things that makes the Canadian gold maple leaf coin unique is that it contains gold minted only in Canada. That is, to qualify for mint, the gold bullion must have come from Canadian mines.
Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coin Denominations
The Canadian gold maple leaf coin is released in several denominations:
- 1/20th of a Troy Ounce
- 1/10th of a Troy Ounce
- 1/4th of a Troy Ounce
- 1/2 of a Troy Ounce, and
- 1 Troy ounce
The gold coins have legal tender status in the nation of Canada with face values of $1, $5, $10, $20 and $50, respectively, but the value of the bullion is much higher than the face value of the coin so no one would use them for day-to-day transactions. Instead, they would be bought or sold based upon the current spot price of gold.
There was an odd denomination of 1/15th ounce coins, with a $2.00 face value, issued in 1994 but they failed to generate much interest in the marketplace and so were discontinued.
The 100 Kilogram Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coin with a $1 Million Face Value
On May 3rd, 2007, the Royal Canadian Mint unveiled a now-famous gold maple leaf coin with a face value of $1 million and gold content of 100 kg with 99.999% purity. These huge gold coins measure 50 cm in diameter and are 3 cm thick. To date, there have been five confirmed orders for these coins, which sell for between $2.5 million and $3 million based on the current spot price of gold.
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