2015-11-05 Thu

In a bid to reduce gold imports, the Government of India has launched 2 gold schemes and gold coins purchasable by the general public. These schemes aim to transition gold from households into the banking system. The Gold Monetization Scheme enables banks to collect gold for up to 15 years to either auction off or lend to jewellers from time to time. You can deposit a minimum of 30 grams of raw gold in the form of bars, coins, or jewellery without stones and other metals. There is no upper cap to the deposits and the interest rates offered to depositors will be between 2.25 and 2.5% per annum.

The Gold Sovereign Bond Scheme offers an interest rate of 2.75% per annum to domestic investors in an effort to reduce physical buying. The interest on these gold bonds are payable every 6 months while the bonds can be used as collateral while obtaining loans from banks. PM Modi also unveiled gold coins bearing the Ashoka Chakra. These coins weigh 5 and 10 grams and are available for purchase along with a 20 gram gold bar. The coins and the bar can be bought separately.