Royal Mint Gold


Royal Mint Gold was a digital gold currency and a cryptocurrency backed by gold reserves in the UK Royal Mint. The Royal Mint began testing blockchain transactions in April 2017. The first test transaction was in August 2017. The rollout was originally scheduled to occur by the end of 2017. US-based CME Group is administering the trading. The Daily Telegraph said it "appears somewhat similar to an exchange-traded fund such as ETF Securities Physical Gold".

Implementation

The blockchain used is the Prova open-source distributed ledger. A proof-of-stake algorithm demonstrates ownership of the physical gold. BitGo provided blockchain code.

Backing gold

The Royal Mint states that "All gold is held within the highly secure storage facilities in The Royal Mint's vault and The Royal Mint acts solely as sub-custodian and has no claim on the gold" and that gold delivery is possible, with additional fabrication fees for amounts less than a London Good Delivery bar.

Cancellation

Around October 25, 2018, the UK Government cancelled the Mint's plans to issue cryptocurrency.