Gold as Money

Buy, save & spend real gold instantly with Glint

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Glint believes in financial fairness for all. Glint was invented to liberate everyone from our current monetary system.

For millennia, gold has been the trusted store of wealth. In today’s world, it’s a secure hedge against inflation and a stable currency when stock markets fluctuate.

Glint offers an alternative to fiat currencies enabling our clients to buy, save and spend allocated gold with the flexibility of Mastercard®.

Timeline
The History of Gold
200000BC
-2026
For millennia gold has been the trusted store of wealth. Gold's beauty, scarcity, and the ease by which it could be formed and measured made it a natural trading medium. Gold gave rise to the concept of money itself. Portable, Private, Permanent.
200000BC
Money from outer space.
The Incas thought gold fell from the sky as the tears or sweat of the sun god Inti. Aristotle said gold was hardened water, transformed when the sun’s rays penetrated deep underground. 
 Isaac Newton thought it possible to make gold out of lead with a philosopher’s stone. Gold on earth was flung onto our planet around 200 million years ago by super-novae explosions which bombarded the planet with meteorites, and dispersed by geo-thermal activities as the Earth cooled. During the formation of Earth, molten iron sank to its centre to make the core. This took with it the vast majority of the planet’s precious metals – such as gold and platinum. It’s thought there are enough precious metals like gold in the planet’s core to cover the entire surface of Earth with a four-metre thick layer.
2600BC
Decorative gold in ancient civilisation.
Some of the earliest examples of gold objects have been found in the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs, who used gold in the creation of jewellery, figurines, and other decorative items, dating as far back as around 2600 BC. The Egyptians, who had at least 1,000 gold mines, considered gold to be the flesh of the gods. Gold was decoratively used in other ancient cultures such as the Mask of Agamemnon in ancient Greece, or the Lycurgus Cup from Rome. In South America goldsmithing was one of the most advanced of all pre-Columbian American arts.
700BC
Gold becomes money.
The first known gold coins were minted in the kingdom of Lydia, an ancient civilisation that existed in what is now western Turkey, around the 7th century BC. In the late 3rd century BC the Romans started minting a gold coin called the Aureus, which continued to be used until the 4th century AD. ‘Aureus’ is derived from the Latin word for gold, aurum.
1489AD
Britain gets gold money.
During the Anglo-Saxon period, the most widely used gold coin in Britain was the Mancus, introduced by the kings of Mercia in the 8th century AD. Following the Norman Conquest a variety of gold coins, including the Noble, Half-Noble, and Quarter-Noble were put into circulation. In 1489 the gold Sovereign was first minted in the reign of Henry VII. Production of Sovereigns was discontinued in 1604 but the coin was reintroduced in 1817; it remained in circulation for centuries. It ceased circulation at the start of the First World War in 1914, replaced by paper money. It remains legal tender within the UK.
1792AD
The US Coinage Act.
The US Coinage Act of 1792 put the country on a bi-metallic gold/silver standard, established the United States Mint and regulated the coinage of the United States. Under this, the US government defined gold and silver as official monetary metals, and established a fixed exchange rate between them. The bi-metallic standard was based on the idea that the value of money should be determined by its weight in gold and silver, rather than being based on a fiat currency (money that is not backed by a commodity such as gold or silver). This was an important step in the establishment of a stable monetary system for the new nation, and it laid the foundation for the country's monetary system that is still in place today.
1849AD
Gold rushes galore.
The California Gold Rush of 1849 began in January of 1848, when gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California by James Marshall. News of the discovery quickly spread, and by the end of the year, thousands of people from all over the world had descended upon California in search of gold. The population of California increased from 14,000 in 1848 to over 250,000 by 1852. The Klondike Gold Rush of 1896-1899, in the Yukon region of Canada, also attracted a large number of prospectors. Other gold rushes include the Victoria Gold rush in Australia (1851-1860s) and the Witwatersrand Gold rush in South Africa (1886)
1933AD
The US abandons the gold standard.
Under the gold standard the value of a currency is directly tied to the value of the gold that backs it. In the 19th century and early 20th century many countries adopted the gold standard, but it fell out of favour during the Great Depression, when many countries abandoned it in order to be free to inject more money into the system. The US dropped the Gold Standard in 1933 and, in 1971, President Richard Nixon ended all ties between the paper Dollar and gold. Nixon’s decision was driven by a number of factors. One was the Vietnam War, which put huge strains on the US economy.
2026AD
Glint makes Gold money again.
Gold is scarce, which makes it valuable; it’s durable, it doesn’t tarnish or corrode; it’s universal, and can be easily transported and exchanged; it can be divided into small denominations, which makes it useful for transactions of all sizes; it’s recognisable; it is a good store of value over time and can be an excellent way to store wealth and can be used to protect against economic and other turmoil. Until now however the disadvantages of gold have worked against it being used as money. Thanks to Glint that’s changed. Glint enables its clients to use gold as money, and a store of value. Gold is security – Glint its key.
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The Glint App
Using gold as everyday money is simple and immediate.
Buy
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Buy gold safe in the knowledge that it is allocated gold, owned by you. You can buy or sell any amount, at wholesale market rates with our low fee at 0.9%. Gold is also available to buy or sell outside trading hours with added margin to enable gold trading 24/7.

Save
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Holding gold is a great hedge against inflation and offers stability during stock market volatility and global conflicts. Your gold balance is secured by physical gold held in Brink's Vault in Switzerland, insured by Lloyds of London.

Send
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You can now share US Dollars, between Glint accounts, instantly, securely and for free.

Spend
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Using the Glint Prepaid Debit card you can buy a coffee, your groceries or your next flight with gold. Spend with ease and confidence anywhere you see Mastercard.

The Glint Mastercard is accepted globally in 210 countries and territories.

Glint in Numbers
Countries and territories where the Glint Mastercard is accepted.
210

Glint clients using the app today.
65,793

Now registered with Glint.
246,832

Value of our clients gold and silver held in Brink’s vaults.
574,260,348
What our clients say about us on Trustpilot
Rated 4.5 stars on average from over 3,300 customer reviews.
Sign up was quick and easy
Sign up was quick and easy. $10 for my card. It came in the mail quick. Loading up my account with my wells fargo debit card was smooth as silk. Bought gold quick and easy. The whole experience has been a good one. Now im a non paid promoter tellin friends, family, coworkers lol.
R
Ryan
Excellent Customer Support
The Glint support team gave me a prompt and complete answer to a problem I was having when signing up and I was able to open my account without any issues. I'm very impressed so far with what this company has to offer and am pleased to have begun my investment in gold.
C
Cindy
Transferring Funds Is A Breeze
Transferring funds is simple as the AP is really well designed and runs smoothly. So far, I have been quite happy with the ease of operation. You come highly recommended by people I trust.
C
Curlybird
Glint is Gold
The Glint app was easy to use as I was guided through useful instructions in setting up my account. I am excited to have made my first ever gold purchase through this very cool debit card service.
DN
Douglas Newell
Security in a crazy world
We are learning that deposits in a bank do not actually belong to us. Asset backed savings is the only way to go. Allocated gold is much better than an ETF (you don't own the gold) and in many ways better than holding physical bars. The friction in buying and selling physical gold is still crazy high. Glad to have Glint to turn to in times like this! Super easy to use.
CS
Craig Seidler
Easy app to download and navigate
Information easy to understand, verification quick, app works smoothly so ready to buy and save instantly - Purchased gold and Glint card ordered - Excellent service
L
Liz
What Makes us Better
At a time of extraordinary monetary policy, and when trust in currencies, banks, and existing payment systems has been eroded, Glint helps us move towards a more stable global economy. Glint is bringing independence, control and reliability to its clients by reintroducing the most universally trusted form of money: Gold.
Allocated Gold

Some banks loan gold to make money. Cryptocurrencies that are backed by gold are a digital token that has a claim on gold, so you don’t own the gold directly. An exchange-traded fund (ETF) doesn’t allow you to own the gold directly either.

At Glint, we’re different. All gold is allocated gold, owned by you and held in the Brinks Vault in Switzerland.

International Wallets

In addition to offering our customers the freedom to hold assets in Gold or USD, we also offer the flexibility to spend abroad with your Glint Card (Mastercard).

The Glint App allows you to hold Gold and USD wallets and transfer between them. You can also send USD to other Glint account holders.

Authorized

Glint Pay Inc. is a U.S. based authorized Card Program Manager. Funds are held at Sutton Bank, Member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Glint Pay Inc. employs effective Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT), and fraud prevention systems and controls to mitigate and combat risks.

Powered by Mastercard

Using the Glint Debit card you can make purchase globally in 210 countries and territories. Buy from as little as a coffee, your weekly groceries or your next holiday with gold.

Spend with ease and confidence anywhere you see Mastercard.

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Glint is not a bank, nor a crypto-currency.
Glint is leading the payments revolution for secure, reliable money.
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