Good Delivery
Rules and Governance
Our rules set out every aspect of Good Delivery administration, including the specification standards for gold and silver bars traded in the Loco London Precious Metals Market.
Only gold and silver bars that meet our Good Delivery standards are acceptable in the settlement of a Loco London contract – where the bullion traded is physically held in London.
Ensuring both refiners and vaults implement the Good Delivery Rules relating to a bar's assay (purity) and weight, as well as its safe handling and stacking, establishes a high level of consistency in the market.
Who are the rules for?
The Good Delivery Rules provide information for existing refiners and the banks that work with them, as well as guidance for refiners seeking accreditation.
Good Delivery List governance
LBMA Physical Committee
The committee is made up of industry experts from the main sectors of the physical bullion market. It is responsible for monitoring, developing and protecting the Good Delivery List. Meeting approximately once a month the committee also ensures that standards are maintained, with an emphasis on continuous improvement and market transparency.
Find out more about LBMA Committees’ work
Vault Managers Working Group
The Vault Managers Working Group comprises the Bank of England and representatives from those LBMA members with their own vaulting facilities in London. The group meets regularly to consider issues relating to bar quality and vaulting procedures. It also ensures consistency across all London vaults. Vault Managers are required to document every case of bar rejection and provide information to the LBMA Executive.
LBMA Referees
LBMA Referees are refiners we appoint to help maintain the Good Delivery System by providing:
- Technical assessment of applicants for listing
- Anonymous proactive monitoring of refiners on the list
- Technical advice on a range of topics.
The referees who attend quarterly meetings at the LBMA are represented by:
- Argor-Heraeus SA: Alessandro Ruffoni
- Metalor Technologies SA: Daniella Manara
- PAMP SA: Barbara Badiello
- Rand Refinery (PTY) Ltd: Terance Nkosi, Madeleine Theron
- Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo: Hitoshi Kosai
Good Delivery List Application and Maintenance Fees
Application fees
Good Delivery application fees cover LBMA’s costs and the work of the referees. Currently the total fee, excluding VAT, is £29,040 for gold and £22,600 for silver payable in three tranches:
| Fees (payable to LBMA) | Gold | Silver |
|---|---|---|
| On application (plus VAT at the applicable rate) | £4,000 | £4,000 |
| Stage 1: Assay Test (not normally subject to VAT) | £11,940 | £5,500 |
| Stage 2: Testing of applicant’s bars (not normally subject to VAT) | £13,100 | £13,100 |
| Total: | £29,040 | £22,600 |
Procedure for submitting an application
We review fees annually and may change them at any time, but not retrospectively once an application has begun.
Fees are payable in advance at each stage. The fees shown for Stage 1 cover the cost of the samples (including their metal content) provided to the applicant, but not the cost of shipping incurred by LBMA. This will be charged in addition to the fees shown. If an applicant does not progress to the next stage, for whatever reason, no part of the fees already paid is refundable, but no fees are payable for the next stage.
Once the tests have been completed, we will notify the applicant of the after-melting weight and fine troy ounce content (for gold) or troy ounce content (for silver) of their sample bars. By separate arrangement, we can sell the gold or silver and credit the proceeds to the applicant. Alternatively, we can make an equivalent weight of gold or silver available to the applicant (subject to the settlement of all outstanding fees) on a Loco London basis by book transfer through the London bullion market clearing mechanism.
The 11th bar, which will have been retained in the nominated vault in London, is not considered to be London Good Delivery even if the applicant has been accredited. The applicant can make similar arrangements for selling the metal content or arrange to collect the bar from the vault.
To find out about the application process and to submit an application, visit the MyLBMA portal.
In order to maintain its accreditation, each refiner on the Good Delivery List must pay an annual maintenance fee to the LBMA (of £8,800 per metal or £13,300 if a refiner is listed for both gold and silver).
All the above amounts are subject to UK Value Added Tax where applicable.
*Please note that these prices are subject to an annual review process that will realise a minimum increase based on the year-end rate inflation. The website will be updated in January of each year.
With effect from 1 January 2021, your GDL accreditation will automatically include LBMA Subscriber status and the range of benefits highlighted below, with more to follow. The introductory fee for the enhanced package is £7,500 for Subscriber status and will be included in your annual GDL Maintenance fee.
LBMA Subscriber benefits include:
- The opportunity to have a seat at the table and be part of the discussions, contributing to the future direction of the market via the development of global standards and solutions.
- Direct access to advice and guidance on a range of physical, compliance and regulatory issues, currently only available to Members.
Support with attestation to the Global Precious Metals Code, to raise market confidence. - Member discounts on LBMA events, including but not limited to the Annual Global Precious Metals Conference, Forums, Assaying & Refining Conference, etc.
- Member discounts for LBMA’s training courses, including the Vault Operators Training, An Introduction to Loco London and the Global Precious Metals Code, plus more to follow.
- Plus, Member only briefings on a range of topical issues, along with our Members Weekly newsletter.
*Please note that these prices are subject to an annual review process that will realise a minimum increase based on the year-end rate inflation. The website will be updated in January of each year.
The refiner must pay the costs and expenses if appointment of a supervisor is required. The supervising company will charge a fixed fee (US$1,250) for each dip sampling operation witnessed (US$1,550 including bar casting), unless specifically agreed otherwise, plus travelling and subsistence expenses incurred by its representative. This means expenses chargeable by the supervising companies will depend on the locations of their representative offices relative to that of the refiner.
Please see the Good Delivery Rules for full details on the proactive monitoring process.
Sample self-testing
Refiners who are in the final stages of preparing to apply for LBMA Good Delivery accreditation may purchase a limited supply of gold and/or silver self-testing samples from us. The samples can be used for a final check of the laboratory's assaying accuracy before the refiner submits its application.
Samples are limited to a maximum of six per refiner for each metal, with costs as follows:
- Approximately 5-gram gold samples at £465 per sample – £2,790 for the set of six, including the value of the metal content, plus VAT (as applicable)
- Approximately 30-gram silver samples at £415 per sample – £2,490 for the set of six, including the value of the metal content, plus VAT (as applicable).
The cost of shipping to the refinery will be payable in addition.
Self-testing assay results (in fineness terms to two decimal places) must be submitted to us within six weeks of the laboratory confirming receipt of the samples. For each sample, the laboratory should supply:
- The number of trials carried out
- The average fineness
- The standard deviation achieved.
On receiving these results, we will provide the refiner with the reference assay values (expressed in fineness to two decimal places) for the samples.
We will keep the submitted results confidential. They will not be provided either to the Physical Committee or to LBMA Referees, except on an anonymous basis.
Failure of the refiner to submit assay results within six weeks could result in the subsequent application being rejected.
Further Information
It should be noted that LBMA does not approve physical Vaults which may be used by the market.
- HSBC Bank USA NA London Branch - 8 Canada Square London E14 5HQ
- ICBC Standard Bank plc - 20 Gresham Street London EC2V 7JE
- JP Morgan Chase Bank - 25 Bank Street Canary Wharf London, E14 5JP
- Scotiabank Europe plc - 201 Bishopsgate, 6th Floor London EC2M 3NS
- UBS AG - 100 Liverpool Street London EC2M 2RH
Inclusion in this list does not constitute or imply any representation or warranty by LBMA as to creditworthiness or as to the services or goods supplied or quality or compliance with any specification relating thereto. No liability for direct or consequential loss, howsoever caused, whether by negligence or otherwise, whether by use of this list or reliance thereon, is accepted by LBMA.
ALS Inspection
Caddick Road Knowsley Business Park Prescot L34 9HP United Kingdom
T: +44 (0) 151 632 9248
F: +44 (0) 151 548 0714
david.pownall@alsglobal.com, rachel.regan@alsglobal.com
Alex Stewart International
2b Sefton Business Park, Aintree, Liverpool, Merseyside, L30 1RD, United Kingdom.
T: +44 (0) 7934 857877 (Rob Smith)
T: +44 (0) 1592 645792 (Audrey Emans)
rob.smith@alexstewartinternational.com, aemans@alexstewartinternational.com (Audrey Emans)
Bureau Veritas Commodities
2 Perry Road Witham Essex CM8 3TU United Kingdom
T: +44 (0) 1376 536 800
F: +44 (0) 1376 520 819
Inclusion in this list does not constitute or imply any representation or warranty by LBMA as to creditworthiness or as to the services or goods supplied or quality or compliance with any specification relating thereto. No liability for direct or consequential loss, howsoever caused, whether by negligence or otherwise, whether by use of this list or reliance thereon, is accepted by LBMA.
Brink's Ltd
T: +44 (0) 20 8818 0659
F: +44 (0) 20 8818 0692
E: mark.woolley@brinksglobal.com
IBI International Logistics
T: +44 (0) 20 8283 4900
F: +44 (0) 20 8283 4925
E: paul.holt@ibi-logistics.com
Malca-Amit Commodities Ltd
T: +44 (0) 20 8814 9850
F: +44 (0) 20 8814 9855
E: allan.finn@malca-amit.com
Loomis International (UK) Ltd
T: +44 (0) 1932 230130
F: +44 (0) 1932 230231
E: brian.hayward@int.loomis.com
Inclusion in this list does not constitute or imply any representation or warranty by LBMA as to creditworthiness or as to the services or goods supplied or quality or compliance with any specification relating thereto. No liability for direct or consequential loss, howsoever caused, whether by negligence or otherwise, whether by use of this list or reliance thereon, is accepted by LBMA.
For the purpose of rounding five-figure assays to four figures, the following principle should be observed (except in the cases shown below). If the fifth significant figure is a six or greater, then the fourth significant figure should be rounded up by one.
- The first exception is that assays of 999.86 to 999.89 should not be rounded up to 999.9 and should be reported as 999.8.
- Similarly assays of 994.96 to 994.99 should not be rounded up to 995.0 and should be reported as 994.9. Thus bars within this range would be below the minimum assay for acceptability.
- Finally, an assay of 999.96 or above should not be rounded up and should be reported as 999.9.