(Kitco News) - Although gold and silver are stuck in neutral as rising inflation fears cool investor interest, the current price action doesn’t take away from the unprecedented demand for bullion, as the British Royal Mint reported record demand early in the year.
On Tuesday, the Royal Mint said it closed its busiest-ever financial year as online precious metals transactions reached an all-time high. Although the mint doesn’t provide exact bullion sales figures, it said that capital gains tax-exempt gold bullion sales increased 94% compared to the same quarter last year. At the same time, silver bullion sales saw a massive jump, increasing 1,000%.
The British Mint said that silver was the standout metal between January and March. While investors diversified their portfolios, some saw record prices as an opportunity to take profits. The British Mint said the value of silver sold back to it rose an extraordinary 3,300%.
“Despite this volatility, investor sentiment remained firmly bullish: customers purchased two ounces of silver for every ounce sold back, signalling strong conviction in the metal's longer-term trajectory,” the mint said in the announcement.
Looking at total activity, the mint said transaction volumes on royalmint.com reached an all-time high, increasing 130% compared to the same quarter of the previous financial year.
"The figures for the last financial year show a fundamental shift in how investors are thinking about their portfolios,” said Stuart O'Reilly, Private Wealth Consultant at The Royal Mint. “Precious metals are increasingly being seen as an essential hedge against inflation and potential stock market volatility, and that conviction is driving record numbers of new and existing customers to The Royal Mint.”
O’Reilly added that although momentum in precious metals has slowed since the end of the first quarter, the price action hasn’t impacted investor sentiment.
“While the recent retracement in prices appears to be a result of short-term interest rate expectations, our customers are taking a longer-term view. They're diversifying into precious metals as a hedge against inflation and a potential stock market correction, and many are doing so in a tax-efficient way through CGT-exempt UK bullion coins,” he said.
Looking at the full 2025/26 fiscal year, the mint said that the number of customers buying and selling bullion via royalmint.com rose 49%. Meanwhile, roughly 60% of all customers during the year were entirely new to The Royal Mint, with more new customers acquired in Q4 than in any previous quarter in the mint’s business history.
The mint also reported strong demand for digital gold and silver assets. DigiGold, The Royal Mint's VAT-free digital precious metals product, accounted for 54% of all transactions.
