BullionVault review: is it a good place to buy gold?
BullionVault is a London-based online platform, launched in 2005, where you buy and own fractions of large professional gold bars stored in vaults in London, Zurich, New York, Toronto or Singapore. Costs are low: 0.5% dealing commission and 0.12% a year storage. It suits buyers who want cheap vaulted gold, not coins at home.
| Operator | Galmarley Ltd (company 4943684), Hammersmith, London; website run by its subsidiary BullionVault Ltd |
|---|---|
| Founded | Company formed October 2003; service launched April 2005 |
| Shareholders named by BullionVault | Gold Bullion Investment Trust (connected to the World Gold Council) and Augmentum Fintech plc |
| Industry membership | London Bullion Market Association since September 2008; London Platinum and Palladium Market since January 2017 |
| Size (its own figures) | About $9 billion of client bullion; more than 130,000 clients in over 175 countries |
| Vaults | London, Zurich, New York, Toronto, Singapore (you choose) |
| Vault operators | Loomis International, Malca-Amit and Brink's (independent of BullionVault) |
| Dealing commission | 0.5% under $75,000 a year; 0.1% to $825,000; 0.05% above |
| Gold storage | 0.12% a year including insurance; $4 monthly minimum |
| Smallest trade | 1 gram |
| Selling | Online at any time; cash usually leaves your account by the end of the next business day |
| FCA regulated? | No (physical bullion is outside formal financial services regulation) |
See BullionVault's live prices
How does BullionVault work?
BullionVault is not a coin shop. Instead of buying a coin and having it posted to you, you buy gold that is already sitting in a professional vault, in the large "Good Delivery" bars (about 400 troy ounces each) that banks and central banks trade. You can buy as little as one gram, and BullionVault records your share of specific bars in your name.
Prices are set on an order board, where BullionVault's customers buy from and sell to each other, with BullionVault itself also quoting. You can accept the best price on the board, post your own price and wait, or use the "Daily Price" option, which deals at the LBMA benchmark price and settles in two working days. Because the gold never moves when it changes hands, there is no delivery cost on each trade.
This structure is very different from buying coins. Read allocated vs unallocated gold to understand why the ownership model matters, and our gold storage guide to compare vault storage with keeping gold at home.
How BullionVault scores on our checks
We apply the same published criteria to every dealer. This is not a star rating. It reflects what we could verify from BullionVault's own pages and independent sources. See how we review gold dealers.
| Check | Result | What we found |
|---|---|---|
| Clear, live pricing | Meets | Live buy and sell prices for each vault are shown on its home page without logging in, and the full tariff is published. |
| Low cost to buy | Meets | In our capture, the buy price plus 0.5% commission came to about 0.50% over spot, well below UK coin premiums. |
| Easy to sell | Meets | Sell online at any time; cash is paid out by the end of the next business day. |
| Proof the gold exists | Meets | Bar lists from the vault operators and an anonymised custody list are published every business day. |
| Ownership and track record | Meets | Trading since 2005, LBMA member since 2008, published audited accounts, named institutional shareholders. |
| Physical delivery | Partly | Possible, mainly as one 100 g bar per dispatch, but fees are several percent and other amounts cost 7.5%. |
| FCA protection | Not applicable | Not FCA regulated, like other UK bullion dealers. No FSCS or Financial Ombudsman cover for the bullion. |
How much does BullionVault charge?
There are three main costs: the gap between buy and sell prices, dealing commission and storage.
| Charge | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dealing commission | 0.50% | On buys and sales under $75,000 in your account year; counted separately for buying and selling |
| Dealing commission, larger | 0.10% / 0.05% | $75,000 to $825,000 / above $825,000; resets on your account anniversary |
| Daily Price orders | 0.50% | Plus 0.3% currency-switching fee for orders in pounds or euros |
| Storage and insurance | 0.12% a year | Billed monthly, $4 monthly minimum |
| Cash withdrawal | Most UK free | CHAPS £20; SEPA €5; US ACH $10; SWIFT typically up to $30 |
| Physical withdrawal | About 1% + 2% to 5% | Standard 100 g bar: flat fee, plus insurance and transport; other amounts 7.5%, 50 g minimum |
The $4 monthly minimum matters for small holders. On £10,000 of gold, 0.12% would be £12 a year, but the minimum makes it $48 (about £36). Above roughly $40,000 the percentage takes over. Our storage cost calculator works this out for any amount.
How does that compare with buying coins?
We captured BullionVault's London vault gold price in pounds and compared it with coin prices from our GoldVetted price check, 10 October 2026. A premium is the amount paid above the spot price of the gold.
| Where | Product | Price | Premium over spot |
|---|---|---|---|
| BullionVault | London vault gold, per kg (buy price plus 0.5% commission) | £101,790 + 0.5% | 0.50% |
| Chards | 1 oz Britannia, best value | £3,259.95 | 2.80% |
| Atkinsons Bullion | CGT-free UK 1 oz coin, best value | £3,285.02 | 3.59% |
| The Royal Mint | Britannia 2027 1 oz | £3,397.16 | 7.13% |
BullionVault price captured from its public home page at 23:32 BST on Sunday 11 October 2026 (market closed), against gold-api.com spot of £3,166.01/oz (£101,789.63/kg). Its sell price at the same moment was £101,702/kg, 0.09% under spot, before 0.5% commission. Coin prices: single-coin prices captured 21:13 to 21:15 BST on 10 October 2026, spot £3,171.03/oz. Coins are Capital Gains Tax free; BullionVault bars are not.
BullionVault is clearly cheaper to buy into, and its round trip (buy and sell) cost us about 1.1% in this snapshot. A coin bought at Chards and sold back to Hatton Garden Metals' published buy price (3.28% under spot) would cost about 6% round trip. The trade-off is tax and form: UK coins are free of Capital Gains Tax and can be held at home, which matters to many buyers.
Is BullionVault safe?
No investment is risk free, and gold prices can fall. On the questions of custody and ownership, BullionVault publishes a lot of detail:
- Your gold is your property. BullionVault says customers own their bullion outright under a bailment (custody) arrangement, and that it has never appeared on Galmarley's balance sheet, so the company's creditors cannot claim it.
- Independent vaults. The gold is held by Loomis International, Malca-Amit and Brink's, which BullionVault says are service providers with no shared ownership or management.
- Daily audit. Vault bar lists and an anonymised list of customer holdings are published every business day, so you can check the totals match.
- Insurance. Vault operators carry insurance at least equal to the value of the metal, and the cost is included in the 0.12% storage fee.
- Withdrawal controls. Any withdrawal from the vault is announced publicly a day in advance, and vault operators limit daily withdrawals to 5% of the total.
Cash is different. Money sitting uninvested in your account is held in client bank accounts and is exposed to the risk of that bank failing, although BullionVault says eligible deposits may qualify for FSCS protection up to £120,000.
Is BullionVault regulated?
BullionVault is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority, and says so on its governance page. This is normal for UK bullion dealers: physical gold is not a regulated investment, and the Advertising Standards Authority notes the market is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme or the Financial Ombudsman Service. BullionVault says it is governed by English property law, follows the LBMA's Precious Metals Code, and keeps a compensation fund (currently capped at $4 million) funded from commission. You can check any firm's status on the FCA register. If you want gold inside a regulated wrapper, read our guide to gold in a SIPP or ISA.
How do you sell gold on BullionVault?
Selling is the platform's strongest point. You log in, choose how much to sell and in which currency, and either accept the best bid on the order board for an instant sale or set your own price. Sale money appears in your account straight away, and BullionVault says withdrawals leave its client account by the end of the next business day. You can also sell at the Daily Price benchmark, which takes at least two working days to settle. There is no minimum holding period.
Dealing commission of 0.5% applies to sales as well as purchases. Gains on bars may be subject to Capital Gains Tax: see our UK gold tax guide.
Can you take your gold out?
Yes, but BullionVault is designed for holding and selling in the vault. The standard route is a 100 g Swiss-refined bar (such as PAMP or Valcambi), one bar per dispatch, delivered by signed-for courier to a verified home address. BullionVault says the flat fee is typically around 1% of the value plus 2% to 5% for insurance and transport. Other amounts start at 50 g and cost 7.5%. Whole 400 oz bars can be withdrawn by arrangement. If you want coins at home, it is usually simpler to sell and buy from a coin dealer.
What customers say
We do not publish testimonials or invent ratings. This is the score shown when we checked on 11 October 2026:
| Site | Score shown | Based on |
|---|---|---|
| Trustpilot | 4.6 out of 5 ("Excellent") | 1,910 reviews |
Trustpilot's page notes that BullionVault asks customers to review it and has a paid Trustpilot subscription. Its AI summary says reviewers often mention an easy-to-use, transparent platform. BullionVault also cites three Queen's Awards for Enterprise (2009, 2013 and 2022) on its about page.
Pros
- Very low cost to buy and sell (0.5% commission or less)
- Cheap allocated storage at 0.12% a year, insurance included
- Choice of five vault cities
- Sell online any time, cash next business day
- Daily published bar lists
- Trade from 1 gram
Cons
- Not free of Capital Gains Tax, unlike UK coins
- Taking physical delivery is expensive and limited
- $4 monthly storage minimum hits small holdings
- Order board takes some getting used to
- No FCA, FSCS or Ombudsman protection for the bullion
Who BullionVault suits, and who should look elsewhere
Good fit: buyers who want low-cost gold they can sell quickly, are happy for it to stay in a professional vault, and want to hold a few thousand pounds or more.
Look elsewhere if: you want coins in your hand, you want gains free of Capital Gains Tax (UK Britannias and Sovereigns are exempt), or you only plan to hold a small amount where the monthly minimum dominates.
Alternatives to BullionVault
- The Royal Mint review: coins and bars with optional storage in its South Wales vault. Compare in BullionVault vs Royal Mint.
- BullionVault vs GoldCore: another vaulted gold service, compared side by side.
- Chards review: the lowest Britannia price in our October 2026 check.
- Atkinsons Bullion review: London dealer with CGT-free coins.
- Best places to buy gold in the UK: every UK dealer we cover.
Frequently asked questions
Is BullionVault legit?
Yes. BullionVault is run by Galmarley Ltd, a London company founded in 2003 that launched the service in April 2005. It says it looks after about $9 billion of bullion for more than 130,000 clients, has been an LBMA member since 2008, and publishes daily bar lists so customers can check their gold exists. Trustpilot showed 4.6 from 1,910 reviews in October 2026.
Is BullionVault regulated by the FCA?
No. BullionVault states that it is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, because physical bullion falls outside formal financial services regulation in the UK. The Advertising Standards Authority notes the physical gold market is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme or the Financial Ombudsman Service. BullionVault says it follows the Precious Metals Code.
What happens to my gold if BullionVault goes bust?
BullionVault says customers' bullion is their own property, held under a bailment arrangement, and never appears on Galmarley's balance sheet, so creditors cannot claim it. The bars are held by independent vault operators (Loomis International, Malca-Amit and Brink's) and listed daily. Cash in your account sits in bank client accounts and carries bank risk.
How much does BullionVault charge?
Dealing commission is 0.5% on purchases and sales under $75,000 a year, falling to 0.1% and then 0.05% for larger amounts. Gold storage costs 0.12% a year including insurance, with a $4 monthly minimum. Most UK cash withdrawals are free; a CHAPS payment costs £20.
Can I take delivery of gold from BullionVault?
Yes, but it is not cheap or quick. The standard option is a 100 g Swiss-refined bar, for a flat fee BullionVault says is typically around 1% of the value plus 2% to 5% for insurance and transport, limited to one bar per dispatch. Other amounts start at 50 g with a 7.5% fee. Buying coins from a retailer is usually simpler.
Is BullionVault gold free of Capital Gains Tax?
No. BullionVault holds gold as bars, and only UK legal tender coins such as Britannias and Sovereigns are exempt from Capital Gains Tax. Gains on bars count towards your annual CGT allowance. See our UK gold tax guide.
BullionVault or The Royal Mint?
They suit different people. BullionVault has lower dealing costs and cheaper storage (0.12% a year versus 1% plus VAT at The Royal Mint), but you own fractions of large bars. The Royal Mint sells coins you can hold or store. Read our BullionVault vs Royal Mint comparison.
Sources
We checked these primary and official sources when writing and fact-checking this page.
- BullionVault: tariff (dealing commission, custody fees, withdrawal and remittance fees)
- BullionVault: About us FAQs (Galmarley Ltd, founded 2003, launched 2005, shareholders, LBMA 2008)
- BullionVault: Governance FAQs (not FCA regulated, Precious Metals Code, compensation fund)
- BullionVault: Vaulting FAQs (Loomis, Malca-Amit, Brink's; daily bar lists; insurance)
- BullionVault: how to sell bullion (order board and Daily Price)
- BullionVault: withdraw gold bars (100 g bar service, 50 g minimum)
- Advertising Standards Authority: advertising gold investments (physical gold market unregulated, no FSCS or FOS)
- FCA Financial Services Register (search any firm's status)
- HMRC Capital Gains Manual CG78305: Britannia gold coins are sterling currency
- Trustpilot: BullionVault reviews (4.6 from 1,910 reviews, viewed 11 Oct 2026)
Not financial advice. GoldVetted provides general information to help you compare options. It is not personal financial, tax or legal advice. Gold prices go down as well as up, and you may get back less than you pay. Check tax rules with the official source or a qualified adviser before you act.