Difference Between Traditional Gold Jewellery and Digital Gold:

by Safe Gold Buy Gold Online India

There are some fundamental differences between them and they mostly lie in the purpose for which you actually want to buy gold in the first place. There are a few different types of gold available and these should ideally be considered in your decision-making criteria keeping in mind purity, quality and price. You should know what you’re getting!

However, in this article, we’ll discuss the main differences between buying traditional gold jewellery and buying digital gold.

1. Jewellery

If you’re sure about what you want, go right ahead! But do pay attention to the following — be comfortable with the cost of making charges, confirm the purity of your gold by checking for the Hallmark, familiarize yourself with the return/buy-back policy and most importantly, ensure that you get a receipt.

Some jewellers may offer instalment/ EMI plans or you can also look at using a credit card, but make sure you understand the interest rates that could apply.

Storage of jewellery is always a concern, so do your research on appropriate safety mechanisms. While jewellery is generally highly liquid, hidden costs such as deduction of making charges, price difference on stones, buyback rates etc. may apply.

It may not be the best option for recovering full value when you sell, but if that’s not the plan, just make sure you get what you pay for and protect your purchase with official documentation!

2. Gold Coins, Gold Biscuits & Gold Bars

While bullion doesn’t have the ornamental value of jewellery, they rate highly from an investment angle. You also have the added benefit of getting a higher purity of gold here with 24-karat options as compared to jewellery where it is usually 22, 18 or 14-karat.

Bullion also has the benefit of being highly liquid, without any penalties from a hidden cost perspective. However, storage and insurance remain factors to be vigilant about. Keep in mind that if you remove the coin or bar from its tamper-evident packaging, you may find it difficult to resell, as it might require retesting.

3. Digital Gold

Gold purchase in any format is auspicious, but with digital gold, you have the added boon of enormous flexibility.

Unlike physical gold, your digital gold purchases are safe from theft or loss. SafeGold, for example, works with partners such as Brink’s India, the world leaders in vault management, to ensure that your gold is stored securely in their world-class vaults, and SEBI registered IDBI Security Trustees, whose role it is to protect the customer’s interests at all times.

Did you know you could buy digital gold conveniently at a moment’s notice from your mobile phone? You can even convert your investment into 24-karat coins and bars whenever you want to, and have it delivered to your home. You can also take your digital gold holdings and redeem them with world-class Jewellery partners like Candere & CaratLane as in the case with SafeGold.

Liquidity: You can sell your gold at a market-linked rate at any time, and never lose out on sunken costs on making charges, etc. like with jewellery. This ensures digital gold is liquid and flexible as well. If you’re worried about being able to afford a sizeable quantity worth of gold at one shot, digital gold also offers purchase through SIP. Much like its better-known Mutual Fund cousin, the principle behind this is to allow investors the opportunity to purchase as much as you’re comfortable with, at the frequency you prefer. This innovation in gold is the best option to slowly accumulate towards long term savings without breaking the bank.

Gifting & Transferring Gold is Easy: A much newer concept, but gifting gold is through a few taps on your phone is a reality! It has far more weight than regular gifts (no pun intended), while also leaving the receiver with all the options in this section (It’s scary to buy expensive jewellery only to find out the person doesn’t like it — taste is subjective!)

That should give you a really good perspective on your options and the best way forward depending on your needs.