Which Bullion Coin To Buy And Why?

I'd go for the Libertad proof - lower mintage, it's a proof, and it is interesting.

If I was buying small amounts of gold, more to hold than to try and flip... I would mix it up. Getting half-ounces from every major bullion-issuing country would be a good start, as would be hunting down extremely low-mintage bullion from countries that do not have well-known bullion programs (Polish Golden Eagles, Russian St. Georges...).

in that order
libertad, buffalo, AGE, maple, philar

3rd and last place for me would be the American Gold Eagles. I have some 1/10's and 1/2's AGE's. They are a gorgeous design, but I really wish the coin was .99999 24k gold. Despite being the most popular #1 gold coin in the USA (and on this thread), I am a purist in bullion.The AGE gold purity is .9167 and is 22k gold. One of the reasons for 22k is durability, but I personally could careless about it because I take care of my bullion. To make up for 22k, the AGE coin itself is more heavier in terms of weight than a Maple or Libertad.

I would rank the Gold Maple Leaf #1 as it is .99999 and pure 24k gold. The design and popularity is world known just like an AGE and they have some interesting designs in terms of privy marks.

Keep in mind this is just bullion opinion.

Libertad would be 2nd for me and I have never owned a gold one. Proof or not, I really wouldn't care. Just as long as it weighs out to 1 troy oz. The design on the libertads are gorgeous in silver form. I can only imagine .99999 gold.

I have managed to scrape and stack four Buffalo 1 oz Gold Coins and four 1 oz Gold Maples, those by far are my favorite and are fun to look at & hold. The design on the US Gold Buffalo is great and it is the US version of .9999 Gold. That's the one I'd target over the AGE....if you want to get really fancy with a Gold Buffalo, check out the 2008 fractionals. The $ prices are very high - even for a 1/10th. I don't even own any of those and probably never will.

As you can see the responses to your inquiry, a lot of folks are advising American Gold Eagles - no harm in getting them either.

At the end of the day, it's all just a matter of preference.

Good luck.

If it's bullion value then it doesn't matter much. If it's a coin re-sell thing then we here over the pond like the Gold Maple Leaf.

I must have missed something in this thread...

The title is "Which Bullion Coin to buy and why?"

With that as the premise for buying gold... the idea is to buy the product you can get as cheap as you can get it. The key is they are bullion, and reselling bullion is based on the current market value of the underlying product. If you take any 1 ounce bullion coin in to sell - they weigh it and give you what they give you... based on their going rate. Trying to add value to them because they are Libertads or Maples is a game sellers play, major buyers such as the buy gold now places...don't care a single iota about those details.

Numismatic coins are different from bullion. Bullion is about the metal and little else.

There is of course one other option not yet discussed---the concept of the "balanced stack" applied to 1oz gold coins. Buy one of each. It'll probably take
a while, but you'll end up with the liquidity of the AGE, the aesthetics of the Libertad, the Euro flair of the Philharmonic, the extreme purity of the CGM, etc...

As for myself though, I'm with the AGE. In the US, it has the best liquidity and it'll fetch the best resale price. Drawbacks notwithstanding and boring and
monotonous though it may arguably be, I think it's the sensible purchase if you're in the US.

Doug.. I am not going to coin dealer but have experience with a few Gold and Silver places. Without exception AGE and ASE are always bought over spot. Maple Leafs are usually over spot and most everything else at spot. But sometimes things like Pandas that are hot can fetch a premium. Heck right now with gold under $1,300 APMEX has a buy price of $1,319 on AGEs, Provident $1,317. Maybe it is just a regional difference. That said I would never try to sell a proof in one of these places that is for sure.

Get your country's coin because it's the fastest transaction and offers best liquidity, especially in America where foreign money is shunned.
Think about it this way: if you were going to gift a one ounce coin to your sibling (or whoever) who knows nothing about coins and bullion, which coin would offer that person the most liquidity? Remember, you have to be aesthetically strong enough to hold the receiver's attention, but also to give a more mainstream coin that is identifiable from a book (generic rounds have no book that I'm aware of).

I personally don't mind if my gold is 24k or 22k because I can always work the metal into something I like more than a coin. But remember that while people like me have an actual use for the metals, the person you eventually sell it to will have nothing in their heads except dollar signs, which means they will pay you less for the metal regardless of how mainstream/known your coin is.

So that's my exercise. Pick a coin in your country that every buyer has heard of, that you find enjoyable to own until its transition to its next custodian.