Do you have a plan to protect your precious metals?
You should. I’m going to tell you mine today.
I’m from Chicago.
The second city. The windy city. The city of big shoulders.
All of that sounds nice, but if you’ve live in Chicago, the phrase that is always top of mind is not so romantic.
You may have heard it before. It’s the phrase that was famously mouthed by Sean Connery in the movie “The Untouchables” when he said “THATS the Chicago Way.”
The Chicago Way.
If you live in Chicago and don’t know a guy who knows a guy, odds are you’ve been a victim of The Chicago Way.
Politicians breaking promises. Dead people voting. Police shakedowns. Nutty union pay rules. Friends of the mayor getting big city contracts. Property tax law scams. BS parking tickets.
All examples of The Chicago Way.
The Chicago Way usually involves the government or its connected cronies (corporations or private citizens) trying to slyly take something from you in one way or another.
From many angles, you’ll find The Chicago Way rear its ugly head in the gold and silver industry even more than just being a citizen of the Second City. In addition to worrying about what happens to your gold and silver when it is in your possession, you have to worry about counterparty risk. What happens when it is in other people’s possession. Here are just some examples of how The Chicago Way can happen to you in the precious metals market.
Morgan Stanley and UBS charging storage fees for silver they did not possess.
Gold and silver price manipulation.
The Goldline Dealer Scam.
Northwest Territorial Mint not delivering bullion to customers.
Bullion Direct sales and storage scam.
The Tulving Low Cost Dealer Scam
Even the HUGE precious metals dealer KITCO has issues.
Crazy, right? I mean I like KITCO for news but I would NEVER buy any bullion from them.
As you can see, it’s a minefield out there.
The good news, since you’re reading this article, is that you’re already buying from the best precious metals dealer in the world, Miles Franklin. If not, then I would test to see if there is something in the water you’re drinking. Or just call the Miles Franklin team up and place an order.
Next, you need a precious metals protection plan that will protect you from becoming a victim of “The Chicago Way”.
So here’s my official Chicago Way Precious Metals Protection Plan.
I always like to stack, store and secure my metals within arms reach, in a private vault onshore and also somewhere offshore. If you’re new to stacking silver and gold bullion then start from the closest point (arms reach) and work your way out (offshore) as your precious metals stack grows. And whatever you do, keep your mouth shut about the size of your stack. I don’t want to see you bragging on the Facebook. The less of a gold and silver scent and paper trail you leave the better.
STEP ONE: Store your gold and silver bullion within arms reach! This means keep your metals protected and in your possession. Just don’t go out and get a safe. You want to think out of the box.
If you do get a safe, make sure there are many layers covering it up, don’t keep it in your master bedroom. Put it in your wall. Put in in the floor, covered by a rug and a piece of furniture. Good safes are expensive, some can cost $1000,000 or more but usually are worth the investment. I did find a great safe for cheap ($1800) on Craigslist but if you’re just starting out you do have other options besides a traditional safe.
BOOK SAFE:
I love the book safes! This one looks exactly like a dictionary except it opens up into a secret, code lock protected compartment that will hold about 300 ounces of gold or silver. It’s not even that secure for a safe but one of the last places a professional thief will ever look is probably your bookshelf. Hiding something in plain sight is sometimes your best option because no one thinks or is programmed to look there and disbelieve their eyes.
The S.T.O.W. :
STOW is a Miles Franklin creation and it stands for the “Sealed Tube Of Wealth”. The STOW is a weather proof, water resistant, airtight container for protecting and storing your gold and silver. You can bury it in your backyard, hide it in your walls, freeze it in a solid block of ice or use your amazing idea brain and do something with it I can’t even think of. To get your hands on a S.T.O.W. just give the Miles Franklin team a call at 1-800-822-8080
**STEP TWO: **When your bullion stack gets bigger, get some precious metals storage in a reputable vault in your home county. Since most of you reading this are USA based, I suggest a Brinks Global vault in Salt Lake City or NYC. Brinks was founded in Chicago in 1859 and has been the world leader in guarding precious metals ever since. If you want to get a little crazy, maybe take a look at Mountain Vault based in Phoenix, Arizona. Mountain Vault is literally a heavily guarded, 6,000 pound steel doored vault built into the side of a mountain.
STEP THREE: Store some of your gold and silver “offshore” in a private safe deposit box and DON’T tell anyone. What does “offshore” mean? Well, if you live in the USA it means store your metals somewhere outside of the USA. Why do this? I don’t know your exact situation but there could be many reasons that range all the way from the rational to the absurd. Facebook friends zeroing in on your home safe location. Family disputes. Frivolous lawsuits. Government confiscation. A “World War Z” type zombie apocalypse in your country. Whatever.
My favorite reason though is that chance favors a prepared mind. Say that to yourself one time.
“Chance favors a prepared mind.”
A private, offshore safe deposit box is the ultimate insurance policy and icing on the cake to the Chicago Way Precious Metals Protection Plan.
How do you even get started with opening an offshore safe deposit box for precious metals?
You’re in the right place.
Miles Franklin has a solid, offshore gold, platinum and palladium safe deposit box storage option for you.
SAFE DEPOSIT BOXES:
Before we get into this, I want you to understand that I am not suggesting you get a safe deposit box at a bank. Do NOT do this. Google “Bank Safe Deposit Box Theft” and see for yourself. Banks can also lose your deposit box. You might not have access to it when you need it during a bank holiday for instance. Some governments can just make a phone call to your bank and have your box frozen.There’s simply too much risk when it comes to using a bank safe deposit box.
Get a foreign private safe deposit box that is not connected to the banking system in any way.
Miles Franklin’s private foreign safe deposit boxes are located in the financially stable Canadian cities of Vancouver, British Columbia and Toronto, Ontario. They are operated and protected by the world’s foremost precious metals protection company, Brinks Global Services. Brinks uses the most sophisticated time vaults and highly trained, 24/7 armed guards. You hold the only keys and your deposit box can’t be opened or audited by anyone unless they have the key.
Even better, since this private safe deposit box service is NOT a bank safe deposit box managed by a financial institution, as of this writing it is not subject to IRS form 8938 and FBAR reporting requirements.
Why should you care that your safe deposit box is not subject to IRS and FBAR reporting? Just the same with my Facebook friends, I don’t need any government knowing how much gold and silver I have nor do I want them knowing where I store my precious metals. My metals are my business and thanks to this specific Miles Franklin private safe deposit box program, I can tell everyone to go pound sand.
Your gold and silver is considered a “managed asset” of the client (You) and not listed on the books of Miles Franklin which means they cannot be subject to the claims of any creditor of Miles Franklin Precious Metals Storage or its subsidiaries. So unlike some other gold and silver storage programs, if Miles Franklin goes bankrupt, no one but you has claim to your metals.
There is no other precious metals storage service of this kind or caliber I know of available on the planet.
The only downside I see, if you can call it that, is the gold you add to your safe must follow Canadian import laws which means you need gold that is .995 fine or better. Stay away from adding 22 Karat gold coins like American Eagles or South African Krugerrands because they trigger a large Canadian import duty around 20% of their value. To help with this, Miles Franklin will exchange or switch out, in many cases at no cost to you, your 22 karat coins for 24 karat gold coins like Canadian Maple Leafs. Here’s how their foreign private safe deposit box system works.
A) You go to http://privatesafedepositboxes.net/ to create your safe deposit box account. Alternatively you can go to the Miles Franklin website and click on the “storage” tab at the top of their website or just call (877) 685-4705. You’ll then fill out the safe deposit box custody agreement. This agreement can be made under your own name or through a corporation, trust, LLC or any type of partnership etc. You and Miles Franklin will be the only two parties with a copy of this agreement. No one else will know that you are the owner of your safe deposit box, not even Brinks or any government, depending on how you set up your account name.
B) Next you can purchase gold, platinum and palladium bullion directly from Miles Franklin and they will add them to your safe deposit box or you can even ship metals yourself or drive on up to the Brinks vault and deposit the precious metals personally. Depending on the amount of precious metal you are storing, you then pick the size of your safe deposit box. The smallest box available is 3″ by 5″ by 24″ which will hold about 500 one ounce Canadian Maple Leafs, 40 kilo gold bars or even 50, ten ounce gold bars. If you get creative, you can fit up to 800 ounces of gold and platinum in the smallest safe deposit box.
C) Once you’ve got the custody agreement signed and precious metals in your private safe deposit box, Brinks takes inventory of and fully insures all of your gold and platinum and palladium. Next, Brinks will overnight you an officially sealed and tamper proof Brinks bag with an inventory list and insurance confirmation certificate along with your account number and the ONLY two keys in existence to your private foreign safe deposit box. The tamper proof brinks bag is sealed with a special cable and “break tab” that corresponds with matching numbers both on the inside and outside of the bag so you know for sure that your keys have not been tampered with since they left the Brinks facility.
D) If the day comes when you want to take possession of your precious metals, Brinks can ship them directly to you or you can drive yourself to the private safe deposit box vault and pick them up. You can also direct Miles Franklin to initiate a sale on any or all of your precious metals on your behalf with a phone call.
Ok.
There you have it.
My 3 Part, Chicago Way Precious Metals Protection Plan.
STEP ONE: Keep your precious metals within arms reach for easy access. Get creative and hide your home safe under multiple layers.
STEP TWO: Store some of your metals under expert protection in a highly secure and private vault “Onshore”.
STEP THREE: As secretly as you can, store and secure some your gold and silver “Offshore” in non-reportable and highly secure vault storage like the Miles Franklin Private Safe Deposit Box Program
Now go get into it.
March 2018
San Juan, Puerto Rico