Lamas Bolaño charges 1,200 euros for gold but refuses buyback

Lamas Bolaño charges 1,200 euros for gold but refuses buyback

A buyer paid 1,200 euros for a 1999 Canadian 350-dollar coin, containing 1.2233 troy ounces of 99999 purity gold. Twelve years later, when he asked Lamas Bolaño to buy it back, the response was a lesson in numismatics: the mint sets the price, not the dealer. On the international market, that ounce is bought and sold by weight. The rest, up to 1,200 euros, was fiction.

What coins were bought and how much was overpaid

The purchase was not just one piece. A 100-dollar coin with a mintage of 11,220 copies, 58.33% gold and 41.67% silver, 13.338 grams and proof finish, cost him 270 euros. The initial lot sold for about 360 euros. The crown jewel was the Canadian one: 350 dollars from 1999 for 1,200 euros. With the metal by weight, the markup on the gold value is hard to justify. And regarding the buyback, the dealer gave no price.

Lamas Bolaño's response: the mint sets the price

The dealer's argument was explicit. The prices of new coins are set by the mints, and dealers simply apply them. As an example, the FNMT is preparing gold pieces dedicated to Goya: 27 grams and 1,150 euros at launch. They add that a coin is not gold by weight, because the mintage and striking condition its subsequent price. The question about the buyback remained unanswered.

The markup admitted by the sector itself

Within the numismatic business, the criticism is sharper. A dealer in the field maintains that the old school buys from one and sells for ten, that the markup reaches 200% on some products, and that those who want to sell recover less than a third of what they paid. The same sector gives the example of sets of 12 euro coins: 105 euros in the catalog versus 45-75 from German shops. The information circulates, and that gap can no longer be hidden behind a shop window.

Where to sell coins bought at a markup?

Here is the crux. Pure gold has a continuous market: it is sold at the official price with a two-digit commission. Limited mintage coins, no. The channels being considered are collectibles platforms that charge nothing if there is no sale, and auction portals where publishing costs money even if no one bids. The problem is not just the price: it is that there are few buyers on the other side. The complete breakdown of what was paid piece by piece leaves a figure that is uncomfortable.

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The case is compared to Afinsa, the firm that, according to reports, sold 350 complete collections of Spanish banknotes that never reached the customers. The difference with having the coin at home is evident. The other one—that the seller still refuses to set a buyback price—is also clear.