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Gold: a working reference for buyers
Investment gold is bullion — coins or bars valued on metal content rather than rarity — and the only gold a retirement account may hold is bullion meeting the fineness standard Congress wrote into 26 U.S.C. § 408(m), held by a custodian at a depository rather than at home.
What people ask us about gold
- ·gold coins or gold bars — which is better to buy
- ·what gold is IRA approved
- ·how pure investment gold has to be
- ·how gold is priced against the spot market
- ·whether American Gold Eagles are treated differently from other coins
What counts as investment gold
Investment gold is bullion: a coin or bar bought for the metal inside it. Its value tracks weight and fineness, not mintage rarity or condition. That is what separates it from numismatic and semi-numismatic coins, whose asking price includes a collector premium that a dealer's buy-back may not honor. When somebody says a coin is a "rare gold investment," they are describing a collectibles market, not a bullion market.
The weight standard for bullion is the troy ounce, which is heavier than the ounce on a kitchen scale. A one-ounce gold coin holds one troy ounce of fine gold, though its gross weight can be higher when the coin is alloyed for durability — an American Gold Eagle is 22-karat and weighs more than an ounce in total while containing exactly one ounce of gold.
Coins versus bars, honestly
Bars carry lower premiums per ounce because they are cheaper to produce and come in larger units. Sovereign coins carry higher premiums because a government mint guarantees weight and fineness, they are recognized worldwide, and they divide a position into sellable pieces. Neither is universally correct. A buyer who wants the most metal per dollar leans toward bars; a buyer who expects to sell in pieces over years leans toward coins.
Divisibility is the part people discover late. Selling a single one-ounce coin out of a twenty-coin position is straightforward. Selling a tenth of a kilo bar is not — the bar is one object, so the whole position has to move at once. That is a liquidity decision, not a purity decision.
Which gold a retirement account may hold
Congress treats collectibles as a distribution when an IRA buys them, then carves out an exception for bullion of a stated fineness held by a trustee. In practice that means the gold must meet the fineness floor and be held by the custodian — not delivered to the account owner's house, and not stored in a home safe under the account's name.
The IRS has said in plain terms that this exception is narrow. Coins whose value comes from collectibility do not become IRA-eligible because a seller calls them "IRA gold." If the pitch depends on a coin being scarce rather than being bullion, treat it as a warning.
How a gold quote is built
A quote has two parts: the metal and the premium. The metal is priced off the live futures and spot market; the premium covers minting, distribution, insured shipping and the dealer's margin. Premiums move with product and with availability — the same ounce of gold costs more in a small popular coin than in a large bar, and popular products widen when mints ration supply.
Every Capstone product is quoted by the desk at the moment you order, which is why the catalog says "call for pricing" rather than printing a number that would be stale within the hour. Ask for the premium as a figure, in dollars per ounce, and compare it to the buy-back the same dealer will offer. A quote you cannot decompose is a quote you cannot compare.
The facts, with their sources
Gold in a retirement account must clear the fineness exception in 26 U.S.C. § 408(m) and stay in a trustee's physical possession.1
The statute treats a collectible purchase as a distribution, then exempts qualifying bullion held by a trustee — so custody, not just purity, is part of eligibility.
American Gold Eagles are authorized by statute, with weight, fineness and design set in federal law.2
31 U.S.C. § 5112 specifies the U.S. bullion coin program, which is why an Eagle's content is a legal fact rather than a marketing claim.
The COMEX gold contract settles in 100-troy-ounce units of at least 995 fineness.3
That contract is the reference price nearly every retail gold quote is derived from, so knowing its unit explains why quotes move in troy ounces.
London Good Delivery gold bars are roughly 350–430 ounces and must come from an accredited refiner.4
Wholesale gold trades in that form; retail coins and small bars are a step down the chain, which is part of why they cost more per ounce.
Terms, defined
- Bullion
- Metal valued on weight and fineness rather than rarity or condition.
- Troy ounce
- The precious-metals weight unit, about 31.10 grams — heavier than the everyday avoirdupois ounce.
- Fineness
- Purity expressed in parts per thousand: .9999 gold is 99.99% gold.
- Premium
- The amount above the metal value that covers fabrication, distribution and dealer margin.
- Spread
- The gap between what a dealer sells a product for and what the same dealer will buy it back for.
Dealer, custodian, depository — three different companies
| Role | Who plays it | What that means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Who Capstone is | Dealer | We source, price and deliver the metal. We never hold IRA assets. |
| Who holds an IRA's metal | Custodian / trustee | Preferred Trust Company or GoldStar Trust Company hold the account itself. |
| Where the metal sits | Depository | An insured third-party vault holds the bars and coins under the custodian's title. |
What can go wrong
Paying a collector premium for a bullion outcome
Semi-numismatic gold is sold at a markup the buy-back market may not repeat. The metal is real; the premium may not survive the resale.
Home storage of IRA metal
The statutory exception is written around a trustee holding the bullion. Schemes that route IRA gold to a home safe put the account's status at issue.
Price risk
Gold's dollar price falls as well as rises, and can stay flat for years. Nothing here is a forecast.
Illiquidity of large bars
A single large bar cannot be sold in pieces, which matters when only part of a position needs to move.
What the industry gets wrong
All gold coins qualify for an IRA.
Only bullion that clears the fineness exception and is held by a trustee qualifies; collectible value is exactly what the statute excludes.
A 22-karat coin holds less than an ounce of gold.
An American Gold Eagle contains a full troy ounce of gold; the alloy makes the coin heavier overall, not the gold content smaller.
Dealers all charge about the same.
Premiums and buy-backs vary widely by product and by firm. The comparable number is the round-trip cost, not the sticker.
Questions people actually ask
Should I buy gold coins or gold bars?
Bars give you more metal per dollar; sovereign coins give you recognition and the ability to sell a position in pieces. Buyers who expect to liquidate gradually usually favor coins; buyers optimizing purely for cost per ounce favor bars. We will price both side by side so the trade-off is visible before you decide.
What gold is approved for an IRA?
Bullion that meets the fineness standard in the § 408(m) exception and is held by the account's custodian at a depository. Coins sold for their collectibility are the category the statute excludes. Our IRA-approved gold page lists what we can place.
Why does the site say "call for pricing" instead of showing a price?
Because gold moves continuously and premiums move with product availability. A printed number would be wrong within the hour. The desk quotes the metal and the premium separately so you can see both, then locks the quote when you confirm.
Can I store my IRA's gold at home?
The statutory exception is built around a trustee holding the bullion, so home storage of IRA metal puts the account's treatment at issue. Personally owned gold outside a retirement account is a different question — that is your property to store as you see fit, and we can talk through insured options.
How is the spot price different from what I pay?
Spot is the reference price for the metal itself, derived from the futures market. What you pay is spot plus a premium for fabrication, distribution and margin. Ask for the premium in dollars per ounce and compare it against the dealer's buy-back to see the true round-trip cost.
Does Capstone hold my gold?
No. We are a dealer. For retirement accounts, Preferred Trust Company or GoldStar Trust Company hold the account and an insured depository holds the metal. For personal purchases, the metal is delivered to you or to a storage arrangement you choose.
Go deeper
Buying gold
Gold in a retirement account
Sources
- 1. Rollovers of retirement plan and IRA distributionsInternal Revenue Service · Primary / governmentView the source
- 2. Announcement 2014-32 — Application of One-Per-Year Limit on IRA RolloversInternal Revenue Service · Primary / governmentView the source
- 3. Publication 590-A — Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)Internal Revenue Service · Primary / governmentView the source
- 4. Publication 590-B — Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)Internal Revenue Service · Primary / governmentView the source
- 5. 26 U.S.C. § 408(m) — Investment in collectibles treated as distributionsLegal Information Institute, Cornell Law School · Primary / governmentView the source
- 6. 31 U.S.C. § 5112 — Denominations, specifications, and design of coinsLegal Information Institute, Cornell Law School · Primary / governmentView the source
- 7. Gold futures contract specifications (COMEX)CME Group · Industry / authoritativeView the source
- 8. Good DeliveryLondon Bullion Market Association · Industry / authoritativeView the source
Written by Travis Bugli, Chief Executive Officer and licensed agent, Capstone Metals. Reviewed by Mark Bugli, Senior Advisory Partner, licensed since 1970. Last reviewed 2026-09-02. This page describes rules and market mechanics; it is not tax or investment advice for your situation.
The premium is stated in writing, every time
Every listing is priced against live spot with the premium disclosed before you commit, and we quote a live buy-back on anything we sold you. A just weight is not a courtesy; it is a command.
“A false balance is abomination to the Lord: but a just weight is his delight.”
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Talk gold with a licensed agent
Call (800) 200-9553 and we will quote the metal and the premium separately, and tell you the buy-back before you buy.