What is Silver Bullion?

Silver is an extraordinary metal. Not only is it indispensable across a number of industries, not only is it coveted as jewelry and silverware but it is also an incredible store of value.

Since ancient times we have used silver as money. More recently, the increase in the price of silver has meant that we no longer use it in our coinage system, but it still has a strong role to play in our investment portfolios as a means of protecting our wealth.

Read on to find out what silver bullion is, the role it can play in your financial planning, and how you can buy silver bars and coins.

What is silver bullion?

Very often silver bullion is used to describe bars of silver, but this doesn’t give you the whole picture. Silver bullion refers to any investment-grade silver, of at least 999.95 purity presented in either bars or silver coins.

Claude de Bullion, the French Minister of Finance under Louis XIII, is who many believe we have to thank for the phrase ‘bullion’.

What is silver bullion worth?

Silver bullion is valued by investors not just because of its price and potential gains, but because of the benefits, it brings when it is held as part of a diversified portfolio.

It brings priceless benefits to the portfolio as it acts as a hedge against inflation and geopolitical and systemic risks. It also performs well during times of uncertainty but also during economic upturns when industrial demand increases. It is very much a double-edged sword when it comes to its role in your financial strategy.

Like gold, silver bullion can be bought in many different weights and shapes of coins and bars. This of course affects the price. For example, a 1,000 oz bar of silver will cost roughly 40 times more than a tube of 25 silver 1oz Britannia silver coins.

The price of silver bullion is closely connected to the spot price of silver. If you were to use our silver price charts page then you would see that it is close to the price of one individual 1oz silver coin, for sale on our silver coins page.

Also read: Is buying silver a good investment?

Is silver bullion expensive?

Silver bullion takes its price from the market price of silver plus the premium or small percentage costs that are incurred during refining, fabricating, minting and shipping the bullion.

Also read: S hould i buy gold or silver?

What is a silver bullion coin?

A silver bullion coin contains 99.99% pure silver and is struck by sovereign mints such as the US Mint, The British Royal Mint, and Canadian Royal Mint among many others. The date and face value which portrays the legal tender status in their country of origin, is usually visible on the coin. The weight and purity of silver in bullion coins is also guaranteed by law.

At Goldcore, we have the following silver coins available:

What is a silver bullion bar?

A silver bullion bar is a block of silver of at least 99.95% purity. Here at GoldCore we sell two types of cast silver bars:

Silver Bar 100 Ounce: This bar weighs just over 3 kg. If the bar is .999 fine, it contains 3,107.20 grams of pure silver. A .9999 fine bar will contain 3,110.00 grams of pure silver.
Silver Bar 1000 Ounce: A 1000-ounce bar is equivalent to 31.1 kilos. If the bar is .999 fine, it contains 3,107.2 grams of pure silver. At 3110.0 grams, a .9999 silver bar contains only a tiny amount more silver, which means investors do consider there to be a difference between the two.

How to buy silver bullion safely?

When deciding to buy silver bullion you must consider the following factors:

Range of silver bullion bars and products offered - some outlets that sell silver bullion have a very limited range of products which can be restrictive if you have a specific budget and requirement for your investment portfolio.
Premiums charged - The premium is the cost incurred during refining, fabricating, minting and marketing the bullion. Typically premiums are higher on smaller bullion bars and on gift packaged coins.
Additional charges - Be aware of any additional charges or hidden costs. These might be attributed to ‘handling costs’ or insurance, or delivery fees.
Storage options - When you buy silver bullion you then must decide where you wish to store it. Will you keep it at home or will you use a silver bullion dealer to store it for you?
Buy-back options - Buying silver bullion bars is a decision to protect your financial portfolio, so we believe that you should always have some. However, we do recognise that there will be times when you would like to realise some of the gains you have made. To prepare for this you want to buy from a silver bullion dealer who offers a buy-back option so you can easily sell your gold, with little hassle and expense.
Reputation - Here at GoldCore we have helped over 14,400 clients to buy silver bullion, so we hope you will be able to find one of our many positive customer reviews, online! It is very hard trying to decide if a company is trustworthy and offering you the best service and quality of product that you deserve. This is why we recommend you always look on review sites and forums to try and gauge the reputation of the company.

Where to buy silver bullion?

There are five main options when it comes to deciding where to buy silver bullion.

Royal Mint - The Royal Mint is one of the oldest and most respected monetary institutions in the world. It is known for selling coins and bars that it only mints itself, this can be limiting for those who are just starting their silver bullion journey. This is in contrast to GoldCore where we are delighted to be able to offer a range of silver bars and coins, as well our Perth Mint Certificate Program.
The Post Office acts as a merchant for the Royal Mint. This means that their product offering is even more limited and premiums are likely to be even higher. As with the Royal Mint, there is no buy-back option, this is limiting for someone who might want to liquidate some of their silver holdings, in the future.
The high street - the advantage of buying your silver bullion direct from a shop is that you can touch, feel and see the bars or coins before you take them home. We agree that this is a good ‘nice to have’ but this does not make for a sensible silver bullion transaction. By buying from a shop you are forsaking low premiums and professional storage solutions. This is in contrast to silver bullion dealers, such as ourselves. We are proud to offer low premiums and secure storage facilities.
Online marketplaces - Anyone can sell gold bars on online marketplaces. The one positive of this is that there will be a very wide range of silver bullion products (and perhaps pretend silver products too!) . Please take care if you look to execute your investment in this way as there is little way to verify what you are buying and it will be near-impossible to sell your gold bar at a later date.
Dedicated silver bullion dealers - GoldCore is one of the leading silver bullion dealers, thanks to our 14,400 clients. Our clients put their trust in us because our service is secure, simple and personal. Our range of silver bars and silver coins suits a number of investment profiles and strategies. We have competitively low premiums with no hidden fees and we offer a buy-back scheme.