{"id":20277,"date":"2026-10-05T05:44:47","date_gmt":"2026-10-05T04:44:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/glossary\/bullion\/"},"modified":"2026-10-05T07:46:56","modified_gmt":"2026-10-05T06:46:56","slug":"bullion","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/glossary\/bullion\/","title":{"rendered":"Bullion"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mrf-gl\"><p class=\"gl-def\">Bullion is gold, silver or platinum in bars, ingots or coins whose price is set mainly by the weight and purity of the metal, not by design, rarity or craftsmanship.<\/p><aside class=\"panel gl-live\"><p class=\"gl-live-h\">\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddec Today in Singapore<\/p><div class=\"gl-row\"><span>Gold, 1 troy ounce (spot)<\/span><b>S$5,320<\/b><\/div><div class=\"gl-row\"><span>Cheapest 1 oz gold coin: <a href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/product\/1-oz-krugerrand-gold-coin\/\">1 oz Krugerrand Gold Coin<\/a><\/span><b>S$5,494.70<\/b> <small>+3.3% premium<\/small><\/div><p class=\"gl-src\">Data as of 05.10.2026, updated daily.<\/p><a class=\"btn primary\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/cheapest-gold-coins\/\">Compare gold coin prices \u203a<\/a><\/aside><div class=\"gl-body\"><h2>What makes something bullion<\/h2><p>A bullion product is bought for its metal. Its price follows the <a href=\"spot-price}}\">spot price<\/a> with a small <a href=\"premium}}\">premium<\/a> on top, and you can sell it back at a price that again tracks spot. That separates bullion from jewellery, where workmanship is a large part of the price, and from <a href=\"numismatic}}\">numismatic coins<\/a>, where rarity matters.<\/p><p>Singapore's tax rules use almost the same idea. IRAS only treats metal as Investment Precious Metal if it trades at a price based on the spot price of its metal content, which is why proof coins and decorative bars are excluded.<\/p><h2>Bars or coins: what Singapore buyers choose<\/h2><h3>Bars<\/h3><p>Bars give the most metal per dollar. Common sizes here are 1 oz, 50 g, 100 g, 1 tael (often 37.5 g), 1 kg for gold, and 1 kg for silver. For GST exemption the bar must come from an LBMA Good Delivery refiner or one endorsed by Enterprise Singapore. Browse <a href=\"\/sg\/categories\/gold-bars\/\">gold bars in Singapore<\/a> or the popular <a href=\"\/sg\/categories\/100-gram-gold-bars\/\">100 g gold bar size<\/a>.<\/p><h3>Coins<\/h3><p>Coins cost a little more per gram than bars but are easier to recognise and sell in small amounts. Coins on the IPM list are GST-exempt here, including:<\/p><ul><li><strong>Singapore Lion<\/strong>, minted by The Singapore Mint (bullion versions only)<\/li><li><strong>Australian Kangaroo<\/strong> and <strong>Australian Lunar<\/strong> series<\/li><li><strong>Canadian Maple Leaf<\/strong> and <strong>American Buffalo<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>Malaysia Kijang Emas<\/strong>, from across the Causeway<\/li><li><strong>Britannia<\/strong>, <strong>Philharmonic<\/strong> and <strong>China Panda<\/strong><\/li><\/ul><p>Silver buyers here often pick the <a href=\"\/sg\/product\/1-oz-kangaroo-silver-coin\/\">1 oz silver Kangaroo<\/a>, the Maple Leaf or the Britannia, all on the silver IPM list.<\/p><h2>Bullion in Singapore: storage and the regional hub<\/h2><p>Singapore has built itself into a precious metals hub for Asia, helped by the 2012 GST exemption, which the government introduced partly to develop refining and trading here. Several private vault operators store bullion for local and overseas clients. If you keep metal in a vault, ask whether it is allocated (specific bars held in your name) or unallocated, and what insurance covers.<\/p><h3>A quick check before buying<\/h3><ol><li>Is the item IPM? If not, add 9% GST to your comparison.<\/li><li>What is the fine weight in grams or troy ounces?<\/li><li>What is the final price including delivery or collection costs?<\/li><li>What will the dealer pay to buy it back?<\/li><\/ol><p>Our ranking of <a href=\"\/sg\/cheapest-silver-coins\/\">silver coins by final price<\/a> does steps 2 and 3 for you.<\/p><\/div><h2>Related terms<\/h2><p class=\"gl-chips\"><a class=\"gl-chip\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/glossary\/premium-over-spot\/\">Premium over Spot<\/a> <a class=\"gl-chip\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/glossary\/numismatic-coins\/\">Numismatic Coins<\/a> <a class=\"gl-chip\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/glossary\/investment-precious-metals-gst\/\">Investment Precious Metals (IPM) and GST<\/a> <a class=\"gl-chip\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/glossary\/spot-price\/\">Spot Price<\/a><\/p><section class=\"mrf-faq\"><h2>FAQ<\/h2><div class=\"faq-list\"><details open><summary><h3>What is the best gold bullion to buy in Singapore?<\/h3><\/summary><div class=\"a\"><p>There is no single best product, but bars from LBMA Good Delivery refiners and coins on the IPM list avoid GST, and larger sizes usually carry a lower premium per gram.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details><summary><h3>Is the Singapore Lion coin bullion?<\/h3><\/summary><div class=\"a\"><p>The bullion version of the Singapore Lion from The Singapore Mint is on the IPM list and GST-exempt, while its proof versions are collector coins and are taxable.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details><summary><h3>Are gold bars or gold coins better?<\/h3><\/summary><div class=\"a\"><p>Bars usually cost less per gram, while coins are easier to identify and sell in small units, so many buyers hold a mix of both.<\/p><\/div><\/details><\/div><\/section><details class=\"gl-src-list\"><summary>Sources<\/summary><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iras.gov.sg\/media\/docs\/default-source\/e-tax\/gst-guide-on-exemption-of-investment-precious-metals7f0062ff-780a-4a53-90fa-e1f3b1e25770.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">IRAS e-Tax Guide: GST Exemption of Investment Precious Metals (IPM)<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/details><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"parent":20237,"menu_order":5,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","_glsr_average":0,"_glsr_ranking":0,"_glsr_reviews":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-20277","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"taxonomy_info":[],"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"","author_link":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/"},"comment_info":0,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20277"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20277\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20365,"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20277\/revisions\/20365"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}