Demand for tax-free gold coins spiked in month before autumn budget

Demand for gold coins was “double the norm” in October, the boss of Ramsdens has said, as consumers cashed in on the soaring price and tax advantages of the precious metal ahead of the autumn budget.

The retailer and lender reported that interest during the month was “extraordinarily high” with more customers making purchases.

Chief executive Peter Kenyon told the Press Association that the sale of gold coins spiked in October, with the budget in late November partly responsible for this demand.

Many bullion coins, such as Britannia and Sovereign coins, are free from capital gains tax (CGT) because of their status as legal British currency.

The Royal Mint, which is the UK’s official maker of British coins, also witnessed strong demand in October for precious metal investment products, recording its strongest single day of e-commerce trading on record on October 9 and seeing its largest ever combined purchase of gold coins.

“Customer preference strongly favours CGT-exempt Britannia and Sovereign coins over bars, capitalising on their tax advantages”, said Stuart O’Reilly, private wealth consultant at The Royal Mint.

The Royal Mint also said the day after the autumn budget was published, revenue from bullion products soared by 79% from the previous day during the same period.

However, Mr Kenyon highlighted that the biggest driver of demand has been an increased awareness about the price of gold and that there are “all sorts of things” which may have driven the spike in gold coin sales.

Ramsdens recorded strong profit and revenue growth on Wednesday, benefitting from gold’s surge in price, but its currency exchange service suffered as more customers moved digitally.

The business reported a 43% jump in its pre-tax profits, from £11.4 million to £16.2 million for the year to September 30 2025, while revenue increased by 22% to £116.8 million.

Its jewellery retail and pawnbroking arms were key drivers of this growth, where gross profit increased by 18% and 9%, respectively.

This was driven by “continued benefit from (the) sustained high gold price”, the firm said.

However, foreign currency gross profit decreased 3% to £13.8 million, “as more customers migrated to online ordering and currency cards” on its platform.

Gold, which is considered a safe haven asset as it carries less risk than other investments, has shot up in price by about 70% over the past year.

On Monday, the metal climbed to a high of 4,600 dollars (£3,415) per ounce, beating a previous record set in late December.

In June, the pawnbroker said the soaring price of gold was prompting more people to “clear out” their jewellery boxes, bolstering their profits.

The Middlesbrough-based chain also provided an update on its first-quarter results on Wednesday, which followed a similar pattern.

Gross profit for the purchase of precious metals specifically increased by more than 50% for the period.

Its currency exchange service saw a sharper drop, however, decreasing by 5% year-on-year.

Looking forward to 2026, the firm says it expects a pre-tax profit of around £18 million but warns that rising employment costs may have an impact on its business.

Owing to the company’s strong performance this year, Mr Kenyon said it will be aiming to open eight to 12 new stores in the year ahead.