Buying Turkish Gold from Istanbul Gold Refinery
The beauty of buying gold bars as a form of investment is the diversity available to the buyer. Gold bars come in a dizzying array of weights that stretch from .5 Gram all the way up to 100 Troy ounces and 5 Kilograms. If the variety of weights isn’t enough to attract investors, the selection of styles and designs should be. To top it all off, gold comes from various sources around the globe, so there’s rarely a shortage of options to choose from when buying. Istanbul Gold Refinery is a new option in the JM Bullion catalog, with its first products arriving for our customers in 2018.
IGR Minted Ingots
Istanbul Gold Refinery refines two types of gold bars: cast bars and minted ingots. The latter form represents IGR’s more sophisticated offering to investors, and also the option with greater variety. IGR minted ingots have refined features with precision-edges and include various packaging and security options you won’t find in their cast gold bars.
IGR gold bars for sale with JM Bullion in this range include weights of .5 Gram, 1 Gram, 2.5 Gram, 5 Gram, 10 Gram, 20 Gram, 1 Troy oz, 50 Gram, and 100 Gram. All of the bars have the same design features on the obverse and reverse faces, and each one is individually packaged for protection and assurance of quality. The designs of IGR gold bars include the following elements:
- On the obverse face, you’ll find the IGR initials of the refinery and the company’s logo. The IGR logo includes the initials in the center of an oval, with the words “Istanbul Gold Refinery Melters & Assayers” around the oval. In between these designs on the obverse are the individual weight, metal content, and purity of the bar. All IGR gold bars have .9999 pure gold content. There’s also an individual serial number on this side of the bar which consists of seven digits in a numerical code.
- The reverse face of IGR gold bars is much simpler in design. The only engraving on this face is that of the company’s “IGR” initials. The letters repeat across the bar in a pattern that sees the initials set on a 45-degree angle.
IGR Assay Cards & Packaging
As alluded to above, IGR gold bars are individually packaged for protection and quality assurance. The bars are housed within tamper-evident packaging for their protection and your peace of mind. Each tamper-evident package includes a built-in assay card. This assay card provides vital information on the bar, as well as its security features. Important elements in the assay card include:
- Markings of the bar’s weight and metal content on the obverse
- Markings of the bar’s weight, metal content, and purity on the reverse
- Matching serial number printed on the reverse
- Certified assayer’s signature on the reverse as a form of authentication
- IGR company logo as a hologram on the reverse for security
- Two invisible security marks on the reverse for added security (only visible under UV light)
Background on Istanbul Gold Refinery
The Istanbul Gold Refinery is the most respected refining operation in Turkey. IGR was formed in 1996 with the support of Turkey’s central government, the Turkish Treasury Department, and the Istanbul Gold Exchange. IGR immediately became the most significant gold refiner and bar manufacturer in the country. Its primary refinery is located in The Goldsmith’s City near the Ataturk International Airport in Istanbul.
IGR’s first gold bars were cast gold bars with .9999 pure gold and were first issued in 2002. Beginning in 2004, IGR issued minted ingots with .995 pure gold content. Over the course of time, IGR has expanded its operations to include the refining of silver bars and increased the purity of its minted ingots to .9999 pure gold. In 2010, the refinery began using laser-enhanced stamps to mark its bars, and since 2011 has been working on the enhancement of its security features in the packaging.
Buying IGR Gold Bars from JM Bullion
IGR gold bars for sale are available to you now from JM Bullion. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us at 800-276-6508, chat with us live online, or simply send us an email with your inquiries.
