When you trade anything of value, you naturally want to assure yourself that the platform you use is not scamming you. Whether it be stock options or precious metals, there seem to be people offering false promises at every turn so they can strip you of your investment.We offer insight into a company that deals in precious metals. You can find answers to your most pressing questions such as who Fidelitrade is, are they legitimate and are their prices competitive? We delve into whether you can trust the investment firm and several of the pros and cons of doing business with it.

Overview

Established in 1997, Fidelitrade’s premise is that it serves more than individual investors. The company trades precious metals that include silver, gold, platinum, and palladium to banks, brokers, dealers, IRA custodians, and commodity exchanges. Trade may involve coins or bullion bars. Filitrade’s associates operate out of Delaware and make several attractive offers to their investors.

• As much as one billion dollars in custody insurance
• Deliveries insured
• No sales tax
• Excellent customer service
• A lot of media and literature materials aimed at helping potential individual investors understand the unique aspects of trading precious metals
• Automatic investments available – Easy way to accumulate your wealth
• No buying pressure – Representatives are not commissioned salespeople

How it Works

Once you decide to invest in Fidelitrade’s services, you may either call for a consultation or complete the online form. Enrollment involves submitting basic information about citizenship and enabling the firm to confirm your identity.Company consultants also work with financial advisors and wealth managers. If you are a private investor, you can coordinate with an advisor to formulate a plan. Your advisor can work with any representative on your behalf, but all transactions must take place directly between you and the trading company. Payment options are flexible.

• Cash
• Personal check – Mail in
• Credit card – Daily limits for existing customers and additional restrictions for new traders
• Wire transfer

What About Storage?

Storage can take place at Fidelitrade’s Delaware Depository which is in Wilmington, or its alternative custody services in Zurich, Switzerland, or Toronto, Canada. You may choose non-segregated or segregated storage. Just as it sounds, segregated custody separates your precious metals from all others, affixing them with a seal and a label with your name. Non-segregated precious metals are with everyone else’s but you still have ready access. You can store non-segregated commodities in bulk or individually.

Commercial Entities

Financial institutions, IRA custodians, and brokerage firms can take advantage of Fidelitrade’s Institutional Trading and Administration Service to provide a precious metals service without too much investment of time or resources. Working with a trading service allows you to focus on your customers’ needs individually or via an omnibus account. You can retain clients without the undue stress of exterior competition. Moreover, you can designate trading to trusted personnel as a simple task rather than dedicate entire task forces to running a precious metals program. Commercial enterprises can take advantage of a few specialty services.

• Armored transportation
• Insured delivery
• Marketing and operational support
• Custody
• Purchase
• Liquidation

Prices

One of the top reasons financial products like options, precious metals, and other commodities fall under scrutiny for scams is their volatility. Many people, even after performing extensive research, are still not prepared when prices move against them. Precious metals can be exceptionally volatile but are still a viable means to expand your investment portfolio. They move in an opposite direction to traditional stocks and thus can stabilize your investments. Gold has long-term stability while silver, palladium, and platinum can show influences from changing industrial demands. Precious metals often remain stable during times of upheaval such as war or economic downturns. The following prices are approximate, subject to change, and represent an ounce.

• Gold Bullion – $1,730 to $1,760
• Gold coin – $1,770 to $1,880
• Silver – About $26 to $27
• Platinum – $1,200
• Palladium – $2,600

You will also have purchase fees associated with your investments and their storage and delivery. Filitrade’s costs are low. Purchase and sales fees represent a percentage based on the amount of your investment. There is a minimum charge of $5 for non-segregated custody and 25$ for individual storage. Otherwise, you have a standard pricing schedule.

• Anything under $15,000 – 1%
• $15,000 to $50,000 – 0.75%
• $50,000 to $100,000 – 0.5%
• $100,000 to $250,000 – 0.35%
• Over $250,000 – 0.25%

Delivery will incur shipping and handling fees and is via FedEx. Fees are $25 plus fifteen cents for each ounce of silver. The surcharge is $2.50 for every ounce of gold, platinum, or palladium.
Storage will incur an annual administrative charge.

• Bulk non-segregated – 0.25%; minimum $17.50 semiannually
• Individual non-segregated – 0.5% asset value; minimal $25 semiannually
• Individual segregated – 1.5%; Minimal $50 semiannually

You may expect other costs associated with financial institutes such as ACH, wire transfer, stopped check, and bag-counting charges.

Benefits

You will find many advantages to working with Filitrade’s structured trading system.

Pros

• Free limit orders for 90 days
• Counterfeit detection is a priority
• Transparency in fees and operations
• No sales tax
• Fully insured
• Many educational tools

Cons

• Few reviews
• Credit card limit is only $1,500 for established clients and $500 for new

Verdict

Fidelitrade is a legitimate precious metals trading company that has been serving the public for over 20 years. They are one of the few such platforms that have both a well-designed website and a physical address. Representatives provide helpful tips, lots of sources for information, and combined experiences in precious metals of about 250 years. Transparent in its methods and fee structure, the corporation has an A+ Better Business Bureau rating and a BCA score of CC. Finally, it received the BBB Torch of Ethics in the Marketplace Award in 2020. No evidence exists that the company is a scam or has perpetrated any cases of fraud or theft.