Prime Minister Unveils New Gold Schemes for India

The honorable prime minister yesterday unveiled the much awaited set of gold schemes each serving a unique purpose primarily aimed at bringing out the gold holdings held by households and institutions and using it productively at the same time trying to discourage further physical buying of gold in order to reduce the pressure on India’s current account.

There were three measures announced:

Gold Monetization Scheme:
This scheme is aimed to bringing the idle gold reserves out from private holding and to be used more productively by bringing them into the financial domain. It is a very important scheme from India’s perspective. However the success of the scheme lies in how fast they can improvise the scheme to attract and gain confidence of the masses. A lot of awareness is required. We are perhaps trying to draw a leaf out of Turkey’s books where it has been a huge success. However, the important difference between both lies in the approach. In Turkey, the depositor of gold walks in to a bank branch with whom he has been dealing for years and his other savings lie there. Therefore, the depositor has the much needed trust and confidence in the institution with whom he is going to deposit his gold with. However, in the Indian context, the customer has to walk in to an unknown collection center to verify and deposit his gold. It is therefore not going to be an easy to task for the holders of gold to part away with their holdings and in the initial phase deal with an unknown entity.

Secondly, the problem of under-caratage in India is well known. When the depositor goes with his jewelry which is marked as 22 carat he comes to know that it’s much lower in purity and therefore it will fetch him lower relatively than his perceived value, and also relatively lower than what was paid at the time of purchase. In such cases, there is bound to be a conflict.

Thirdly, the option to select the mode of repayment at the time of deposit may be done away with as customers would not know that 8-10 years down the line, would they require the gold or cash instead. The depositors should be given the option at maturity to select the mode of repayment.

Fourthly, the interest rate offered could have been higher, somewhere close to at least 4% to entice holders of gold to part away with their holdings. The current rate offered of 2.25-2.5% may fall short of expectations.

In order for Gold Monetization Scheme to succeed, banks have to play a pivotal role and it would be better if the customers walk into a banking entity in which they have the trust and confidence - an outcome of dealing for all the many years. Also, awareness and educating the masses is important regarding the scheme.

Sovereign Gold Bond:
A Sovereign Gold Bond is a paper alternative to physical gold, to address the investment demand for gold in India, and thereby reduce physical demand for gold and in turn reduce gold imports.

Unlike Gold ETFs, the bond will not be backed by gold, but by a sovereign guarantee. The investors will get interest on the gold bond at 2.75% which will be subject to tax, and on maturity they will get the prevailing value of gold at that time.

It’s a good alternative but the following issues will run through investors` mind while deciding to invest in them

India gold coin:
This is a sovereign gold coin. Many countries have their sovereign gold coins. India largely imported gold coins for consumption, so this India gold coin comes at a right time when the government is pushing the concept of Make in India.

More so, it aims to bring in a measure of standardization as far as the purity of gold and also pricing of gold goes. The government can also channelize gold collected in the Gold Monetization Scheme towards minting of these coins.

This three-pronged approach was much needed from India’s perspective. However, there are some limitations on certain aspects which need to be proactively addressed as these schemes develop. Government and banks need to do a lot of work towards education and awareness of these gold schemes for it to succeed. Also, an entity like a Gold Corporation is the need of the hour to ensure smooth implementation and coordination of these schemes. It would increase the chances of success when the shortcomings can be easily addressed by a focused entity. Not only that, India could further develop its gold market and use its strength to become a hub for gold trading, refining, jewelry manufacturing etc as far as the global gold market is concerned. India has the potential and expertise in gold and also being the largest consumer and holder of gold, this is certainly possible – an entity like Gold Corporation can help in a big way by creating the right policies to help develop the market.

Data Source: Bloomberg, World Gold Council

Disclaimer, Statutory Details & Risk Factors:

The views expressed here in this article / video are for general information and reading purpose only and do not constitute any guidelines and recommendations on any course of action to be followed by the reader. Quantum AMC / Quantum Mutual Fund is not guaranteeing / offering / communicating any indicative yield on investments made in the scheme(s). The views are not meant to serve as a professional guide / investment advice / intended to be an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial product or instrument or mutual fund units for the reader. The article has been prepared on the basis of publicly available information, internally developed data and other sources believed to be reliable. Whilst no action has been solicited based upon the information provided herein, due care has been taken to ensure that the facts are accurate and views given are fair and reasonable as on date. Readers of this article should rely on information/data arising out of their own investigations and advised to seek independent professional advice and arrive at an informed decision before making any investments. Please visit – www.quantumamc.com/disclaimer to read scheme specific risk factors.

Above article is authored by Quantum.

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