Glint sees gold buying soar as markets meltdown

Glint sees several hundred percent increase in the amount of gold clients buy over the last 5 weeks as global markets see meltdown and gold price reaches all-time high.

March 23, 2020

LONDON, UK.- Glint Pay Services Limited (“Glint”), the fintech company that makes gold an alternative global currency by enabling its clients to buy, sell, save and spend their physical gold instantly through Glint’s prepaid debit card (Mastercard)⁴ and multi-currency app, today announces that it has experienced a several hundred percent increase in its clients buying gold during the recent turmoil effecting global equity markets.

Glint’s clients have been the big winners as they flocked to gold, the safe haven currency of last resort, as the markets swung violently over the last few weeks on fears of a global economic downturn.

Global stock markets lost some USD 6 trillion to date, but even after a brief rally, shares around the world arguably had their worst day since the financial crisis of 2008, with the dramatic falls leading to the day being dubbed “Black Monday.” According to the Wall Street Journal [5] of 19 March 2020, the DJ Industrial Average and the S&P 500 have lost around 30% since they peaked in mid-February.

Compounding the situation is the ongoing tussle between Saudi Arabia and Russia over crude oil production levels, which has seen benchmark crude oil prices collapse to below USD 30/barrel for WTI and Brent crude.^[6]

Central banks around the world have cut interest rates and governments have injected massive amounts of money into the financial system to try to prevent further declines in equities and fend off corporate bankruptcies. They are using the firepower they have to prevent what is by now a probable recession into becoming a serious depression.

Conversely the price of gold has hit some high points in both GBP and USD, trading on 19 March 2020 at USD 1,470 per ounce.

To date, Glint has more than 74,000 app downloads, tens of thousands of registered users and more than GBP 69 million in transacted volume.

Stock markets have recovered somewhat as central banks and governments have injected paper money into the financial system. However, this not a signal of ‘things returning to normal.’ Not least because it is no longer clear what that ‘normal’ might be – too many shocks are around.

In such politically and macro-economically volatile times it is natural that people search for safe havens –and gold has throughout history been seen as one of the safest. Gold has historically been a better store of value than any government created currencies, which typically erodes over time. Since 1970, the U.S. dollar has lost 86% of its purchasing power due to inflation², whereas over the same period if you had held your wealth in gold, your purchasing power would have risen 505%¹ (inflation adjusted).

In 1970, a cheeseburger would have cost you USD 0.55 cents in the US. In 2018, the same cheeseburger cost USD 3.47 due to the increase of U.S. annual average inflation, thus decreasing the value of the U.S. dollar. In 1970, a gram of gold would have bought you two cheeseburgers, whereas today a gram of gold would allow you to purchase twelve cheeseburgers. ²

“Glint’s mission to bring a reliable gold currency to the fingertips of everyone in the world is being validated as the global economy unravels,” said Jason Cozens, Founder and CEO of Glint. “Glint offers an alternative that is valued globally anytime, anywhere. Welcome to money’s new standard.”

As a fintech company, Glint is at the cutting edge of finance, enabling its customers to stay ahead of the fast-moving world of currency depreciation and exchange. “Gold has a crucial historic role as money, and we see it defining a future whereby people can take control over their own income streams and not leave them to the mercies of banks,” says Cozens. “As the world inexorably moves to being cashless, Glint provides a future-proofed solution to 24/7 globalized living.” adds Cozens.

Glint offer an innovative multi-currency payments solution that provides instantaneous ownership of physically allocated gold and the ability to use it as money digitally through an app and prepaid debit Mastercard (gold is converted into e-money for transactions).

Physically allocated gold belongs outright to its owner, as opposed to unallocated gold, “exposure to gold” such as when the gold is owned by a FinTech company (e.g. Revolut) or a capital markets instrument such as an exchanged traded fund (“ETF”). By offering access to gold Glint helps shield clients them from the destructive effects of inflation and protects them from the systemic risk of future global financial crises

Glint enables you to save, spend, and exchange between USD, EUR, GBP and gold wallets. Glint’s clients know their gold is securely held in a Brinks Vault in Switzerland. Brinks is insured with Lloyds of London.

In the next few months, Glint will launch Person to Person (P2P) payments, giving clients the ability to send gold and currencies to fellow Glint clients as easily and instantly as you might send a text message.

Fees are transparent and simple with Glint when buying or selling gold or spending in foreign currencies. There are no hidden fees and Glint uses the best available market rates with no Glint margin added, when transacting in 150 currencies around the word.

Glint has recently launched the ability for clients to experience no fees when making a gold-based purchase in their home currency of residence using the Glint pre-paid debit card (Mastercard).

You should be aware that Glint’s gold offering is not subject to regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”). Always speak to an independent financial adviser if you have any questions or concerns.

About Glint

Glint is a FinTech that uniquely enables physical gold to be converted into e-money for spending via a pre-paid debit card (Mastercard). Glint also offers a multi-currency account. Glint enables its clients to buy, save and exchange physical gold and other currencies.

Glint’s vision is a world where everyone has an equal opportunity to prosper, made possible by providing everyone with a reliable form of money, gold.

Glint’s clients know their gold is secured in a Brinks Vault in Switzerland. Brinks is insured with Lloyds of London. Glint issues clients with e-money, via the Glint app, upon receipt of fiat funds. All e-money issued by Glint is held in safeguarded and segregated accounts.

Already available in the UK, SEPA³ and the US, Glint is set to launch in Canada, Japan, and Scandinavia in 2020.

Gold is the world’s alternative to government-controlled fiat currencies and has been a secure and globally accepted form of payment since 4,000 BC. Glint is a tangible alternative to cryptocurrencies, because it provides ownership of physical gold and permits instant gold-based purchases. Glint interacts with the global banking system and is a form of instantaneous payment for goods and services.

About Jason Cozens (Founder & CEO of Glint)

Mr. Cozens has more than 20-years’ experience within the eCommerce technology and digital marketing sectors. Mr. Cozens is Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Glint. In this role, he is responsible for shaping the company’s strategy and overseeing the Glint technology platform. Prior to founding Glint, Mr. Cozens was the co-founder of GoldMadeSimple.com, a website he co-created in 2009 to provide customers with a fast and easy way to purchase physical gold bullion bars and coins. Before GoldMadeSimple.com, he helped to found Bite Digital Ltd., a 360° digital marketing and ecommerce development agency. Prior to that, he was the Director of Online Capital at DISC (later sold to Bartercard PLC) where he helped evolve their online group discount retail channel by increasing sales and efficiency through the introduction of technologies, marketing and integrated supply chain processes. Before that, Mr. Cozens was the Founder & CEO of Visuality Ltd., a digital agency that produced pre-build virtual reality visualisations of projects such as the Sydney Olympic and Wembley Stadiums and built and maintained the first ecommerce platforms for some of Europe’s high street retailers and manufacturers.

Media Contact
Kelly McCabe – Head of Marketing, North America – Glint
[email protected]

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Sources

1- World Gold Council Gold Demand trends Q1 2019: https://www.gold.org/goldhub/research/gold-demand-trends/gold-demand-trends-q1-2019/investment
2 – U.S. Inflation Calculator: Historical Interest rates: https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/inflation/historical-inflation-rates/
3 – We issue pre-paid debit card into the US and the Single Euro Payments Area which is wider than just the UK and EU.
4 – In the US Glint’s prepaid debit card is issued by Sutton Bank, member FDIC, pursuant to a license from Mastercard International Inc. Card account funds are FDIC insured up to $250,000. Terms and conditions apply. See Cardholder Agreement for details. Glint client gold is securely held in a Brinks vault in Switzerland. Brinks is insured with Lloyds of London. In the UK Glint Pay Services Limited (company No. 10117131) is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 (FRN: 900657) for the issuing of electronic money. See Glint’s Financial Services Registration linked from our website. Glint’s clients know their gold is secured in a Brinks Vault in Switzerland and insured by Lloyds of London 100%.
5 – https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-stock-markets-trump-bump-is-about-to-be-erased-11584618522
6 – https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/19/stock-market-today-live.html