The VanEck Merk Gold Trust (NYSE Arca: OUNZ) has reduced the fees investors pay to take delivery of their gold. The fund gives investors access to buy and hold gold through an ETF with the option to take delivery of the gold in exchange for the fund’s shares.
Axel Merk, President of Merk Investments.
Axel Merk, president of Merk Investments, the sponsor of OUNZ, commented: “Investors appreciate the ease of buying gold through an ETF, but foremost they want to be assured the gold is really there for them. Now, we are reaffirming our commitment to provide investors with easy and cost-effective access to their gold,”
On any business day, investors may request delivery of the London bars (the standard 400oz bar) held by the fund, as well as exchange their shares for gold coins (or bars) that are more commonly desired by individual investors. Minimum fees have been replaced by a flat fee that makes smaller deliveries more economical.
For example, the cost of taking delivery of 20 1oz Australian bars (worth around $26,000) has been reduced by 30% to $840, and the cost of taking delivery of 50 London bars (worth around $26 million) has been reduced by 96% to $25,000.
“We increasingly see investors drawn to OUNZ not only for the simple ETF access it provides to gold, but also its unique feature that enables investors to take delivery of their gold,” said Brandon Rakszawski, ETF product manager for VanEck. “We believe the fee reduction will benefit shareholders long-term.”
Because investors in OUNZ own a pro-rata share of the gold held in the fund, taking delivery or exchanging the gold into other coins and bars is not a taxable event. The fund was launched in May 2014 and currently has $136m in assets under management, with an expense ratio of 0.40%.
The gold owned by the fund is stored in JP Morgan’s London vault, the largest of the six commercial vaults in the city. The vault also holds the gold of several other ETFs including the iShares Gold Trust (NYSE Arca: IAU), the Source Physical Gold P-ETC (LON: SGLD), and the db Physical Gold ETF (LON: XGLD).