Article On Dealers And Minnesota's Law

Ya, got the same email this morning.

I think that the dealer is not being unrealistic, to have to register in a state just to sell to somebody there. Even when you are at a show, how is a dealer supposed to know is a buyer is from Minnesota? Furthermore, Any non-base metal Numismatic coins (Most High-Value collector grade coins are non-base metal, aren't many sold LWC's that exceed 5k online.) is counted as bullion. Obviously the office of the Minnesotan governor didn't do their research.

But I guess, It was can also be analyzed another way in that, a dealer would only have to register once. I think that the law is ridiculous and with the low compliance it's getting after a year, it's pretty much useless.

Oh-Oh



Should I exclude selling my coins on ebay to that state?

Now ebay lets me sell "only" to the 48.

What part of "Registrations issued or renewed by the commissioner under this chapter shall expire on June 30 and must be renewed." would give you THAT impression?

Plus you are required to maintain a surety bond.

From reading the law, it's pretty much targeted as the cold calling sales boiler rooms - the registration requires phone numbers, domain names, etc. Each sales rep must be registered.

There are several provisions that simply seem to make it impossible to sell bullion for 401(k)s, etc. talking about misrepresenting earnings potential, delaying delivery, etc.


But one jumps out: given the normal coin show...
I think about 1 in 5 purchases at shows give me an invoice. Heck half the time they don't even have business cards...

1) This is just more government intrusion, and it will not end well. Coin Registration?
2) It really doesn't affect me yet. If I dealt in $100,000 worth, I would still be a hobbiest and not a dealer. Driving an expensive sports car does not make me a car dealer.

I think what we will see is a hit to our coin shows in MN. Many small time dealers are confused and limiting the number of shows they attend or staying away from silver and gold sales. Another example of government overreach. Fortunately I live close enough to Iowa.

Remember, MN also gave you Jesse Ventura and Al Franken...

We just won't sell to anyone in Minnesota.

It is only a matter of time before this new legislation is challenged before the courts, what they decide is anyone's guess. The state compares regulating coin/bullion dealers to current regulations that have been upheld by the courts upon the payday loan industry.

Insightful article on how a state can enforce its regulations on out of state payday lenders.
http://www.consumerfed.org/pdfs/IPD...sdiction.pdf

I'd speculate that the new regulations will likely be upheld upon Minnesota based dealers and sellers while they may not be enforceable upon out of state transactions. I don't see the big bullion dealers like APMEX up in arms so they must not expect this new law to seriously impact their business.

It is really a shame because it is going to put the smaller players like brick and mortar shops and show/flea market dealers out of business. Only the biggest Minnesota dealers will have the resources and systems in place to comply and will ultimately pass on the increased cost to the consumer.

I live in Minnesota, and so far, I haven't seen any effects of the silly legislation. Granted, the "coin show" footprint in Minnesota is so abysmally small that I usually don't attend more than 2 shows a year...and they have a max of 15-20 dealers each. I am a small-time collector -- I generally purchase less than $10K in coins per year.

My opinion is still that there is basically no way for the MN Dept of Commerce to enforce this policy, so I don't see it really affecting us little guys. I did attend the MOON show last year -- and there were already around 8-10 tables that were deserted because the dealers that had booked them backed out of the show because of this legislation. This year it might be 20-30 dealers total (?)...I guess we'll see.