Blanchard Gold is another name for Blanchard and Company. This massive corporation has operated in the United States for nearly half a century, having been founded just as gold sales were legalized by President Nixon. They have been accredited with the Better Business Bureau for just as long.
But just because a company is the oldest doesn’t always mean it’s the best. Has Blanchard Gold been able to keep up with the competition? What do they offer today, and are their services worth the cost?
We have done hundreds of hours of research on the best precious metals investment companies for anyone that wants to invest!
About Blanchard Gold
Blanchard Gold is one of the oldest precious metals firms in the United States. It is a family-owned corporation that serves clients all over the country. The company’s name is well-known in the industry, and they have a strong reputation for integrity and longevity.
The people at Blanchard Gold believe that it’s important to create a diverse portfolio of tangible assets. These tangible assets offset intangible assets like stocks and bonds. When the stock market fluctuates, the value of tangible assets tends to rise. People have found that precious metals and numismatics are vital to weathering economic turbulence without losing their income.
Blanchard Gold’s experts aim to help people create the right portfolio for themselves as individuals. In addition to investment-grade bullion like platinum, palladium, gold, and silver, they also have numismatic collectibles. Numismatics cannot be held in a precious metals retirement account, but many investment-grade bullion pieces can be.
Creating a Portfolio
Blanchard Gold doesn’t just function as a one-off precious metals dealer. The company is built for serious investors who want to secure part of their assets for their financial future. So when you get started, you’ll speak to a portfolio manager about your needs. This manager will ask you questions about your objectives, risk tolerance, current assets, and ideal time frame.
While you don’t have to speak with these investment managers, doing so can help you to enact and follow through on a plan. Understanding the implications of each purchase means that you can maximize your potential long-term rewards while minimizing your short-term risk.
In addition to individual portfolio purchases, Blanchard Gold’s experts can make suggestions for gold IRAs. These accounts need to comply with certain IRS regulations. Only certain coins and bars that meet high purity standards can be used. You’ll need to discuss how to set up your account and buy the right IRA-approved metals for your needs.
The company also provides guidance and services related to topics such as:
Blanchard Team Focuses
The team of experts at Blanchard Gold can deliver a wealth of knowledge. The company’s policies are built around helping investors to be as confident and informed as possible.
To that end, they will create custom research solutions. A highly qualified numismatist is the one who chooses every individual coin in Blanchard Gold’s inventory. This individual rejects more than three in four coins, only picking the best ones with the brightest potential. If you have a specific rare coin that you’re looking for, the company’s numismatists can use their networks to try to source it from anywhere in the world.
There are also strong commitments to safety. When packages ship, they are all fully insured and registered as the default. This means that you can track the package’s whereabouts, and if it gets lost in the mail, you can recoup the loss through the insurance policy.
Blanchard Gold also states that they are committed to competitive pricing. When a client finds a better price online, Blanchard will try to match or beat the price. You’ll just need to show the offer in writing, and your team member will see what they can do.
One issue for many people buying precious metals is liquidating the holdings. You want to get the right value for your assets. Many pawn shops and cash-for-gold stores make offers at well below the spot price of gold, banking on buyer desperation.
So to get rid of this problem, Blanchard Gold has a complete buyback guarantee. They promise that they’ll repurchase any coins and assets that you bought from them, as soon as you’re ready to liquidate.
Every client is matched to a dedicated portfolio manager. This manager will get to know you on an individual level. For many clients, the relationship with their main portfolio manager spans decades. This person will become familiar with you, your family, your life, and your goals. Blanchard seeks to forge lifelong bonds with clients and to provide ongoing insights for financial wellness.
History of the Company
Blanchard Gold was founded about half a century ago by Jim Blanchard. He was the head of a grassroots movement across the United States to legalize the ownership of gold. At the time, individual American citizens were not allowed to own gold. Jim Blanchard believed that it is a key human right for people to own gold in their individual portfolios, and that this ownership is important to protecting personal wealth.
He created colorful, eye-catching marketing campaigns that got the public talking. During the second inauguration of President Nixon, he had a plane fly above, trailing a “Legalize Gold” banner. He had a variety of press conferences where he publicly held onto gold bars, daring police to place him under arrest.
Jim Blanchard was finally successful in 1974, when President Ford legalized owning private gold. Just a year after that, he opened Blanchard and Company, headquartered in New Orleans.
Over the past half century, Blanchard and Company has worked with more than 600,000 clients. Billions of dollars have passed through the firm. Over a billion in sales was made in just the last three years.
More than two decades ago, the company created a partnership with John Albanese. John Albanese is the most well-known and renowned numismatist in the world. He was able to make the coin selection process even more expert. Blanchard Gold quickly began to acquire more and more rare coins, including some coins that were worth more than a million dollars apiece.
Blanchard Qualifications
As has been mentioned, Blanchard Gold has been part of the industry for 48 years. It was founded just one year after gold ownership was legalized. The company founder had previously engaged in grassroots protests against the ban on gold ownership.
They have been accredited with the Better Business Bureau for 40 years and have an A+ rating. To maintain an A+ rating, a company must respond to all consumer complaints and have no pending government action against them.
Blanchard Gold is a member of the Industry Council on Tangible Assets, the Professional Coin Grading Service, the Numismatic Guaranty Corporation, the Precious Metals Association, and the American Numismatic Association.
How to Purchase from Blanchard Gold
Purchasing from Blanchard Gold is very easy, thanks to the company's flexible ordering process. The website uses an algorithm that updates the price of various products in real time. So unlike many other companies, you don't need to call to get a quote. You'll know exactly what you're expected to pay right away.
Once you've decided to make a purchase, you can either order online or over the phone. To order online, you'll simply place your items in the eCommerce cart and then check out. To order over the phone, you can call the company during their office hours. This is every weekday from 7 AM to 7 PM Central Time.
When you check out, you'll need to decide on your payment and shipping method. There are multiple payment choices and shipping prospects available. If you're not sure which is best for you, you can call the office during business hours and ask an expert for help.
Payment Options
The available payment methods include:
Bank Transfers
Blanchard Gold recommends that customers use a bank wire transfer, since it's a quick and secure way of moving funds into your account. You can make purchases immediately. You can get wire transfer instructions by contacting Blanchard Gold. The wire transfer information is also available on the website if you'd like to initiate the process with your bank by yourself.
Checks
Several types of check can be used. These include money orders, cashier's checks, business checks, and personal checks. If you send a check in, it will need to be held for seven days to make sure that the funds clear. This is in addition to the time it takes to arrive in the mail.
The mailing address for the checks is on the website as well. There's a separate address if you decide to mail your check overnight.
Credit Cards
MasterCard and Visa are the only available forms of credit card in the online store. If you use your credit card online, there's a limit of $10,000. Wire transfers are equally fast, but they don't have a limit.
You can use American Express and Discover in addition to Visa and MasterCard if you order over the phone. The limit is also lifted when you place a phone order.
However, if you do use a credit card, the order will be shipped to the billing address of the card. You do not have the option to change the address to somewhere else.
Bitcoin
If you have a Bitpay cryptocurrency wallet, you can pay for your order in cryptocurrency. You'll be given a quote based on the conversion rate of Bitcoin to US dollars. According to the website, all cryptocurrency orders have a $50,000 limit.
Storage
Finally, you'll choose how your assets will be stored. If this is a purchase for an IRA, then they need to be held in a licensed depository. But if this is a personal purchase, you have options. You might have them delivered to a bank safety deposit box or straight to your door. If you prefer the security of a private third party company, you can open an account with the same secure facilities that hold people's IRA assets.
Is Blanchard Gold Legitimate?
Blanchard Gold is definitely a legitimate company. In fact, this company has been around for longer than almost every other gold dealership in the US. They have been BBB accredited for more than 40 years and have been in the industry for 48 years. The Better Business Bureau gives them an A+ rating.
Third party organizations aren’t the only places that Blanchard Gold is praised. There are dozens of online customer reviews from past consumers, the vast majority of which are positive. The BBB website hasn’t logged any complaints in the past three years, but they have 38 customer reviews with an average of 4.87 out of 5 stars.
Reviewers on the BBB website have stated that they were happy with the prices, the professionalism, and the efficiency of the company. Many say that they would recommend the company to their friends and that they’d purchase from them again in the future.
It’s not easy to find consumer feedback on other websites, but the customer reviews indicate that clients are largely satisfied with their experiences. Add to that the nearly half-century of experience, and you have an overall trustworthy firm.
Pros & Cons of Blanchard Gold
Pros
Cons
Final Thoughts
Blanchard and Company, otherwise known as Blanchard Gold, is a hugely influential player in the precious metals industry. The company’s founder was a disruptor 50 years ago who played a role in making gold ownership legal in the US. Prior to that, gold could only be owned by the US government.
The company has continued to be relevant well into the modern day. They mirror many of the best precious metals retailer practices by treating every customer as an individual. You can work with a dedicated portfolio manager to make the decisions that are right for your wealth. The same is true if you want to put part of your retirement assets into an IRA.
Blanchard Gold may be best-known for its collectible coins, however. The company employs one of the greatest numismatists in the world. He sources and chooses all of the rare coins that they acquire. They have held multiple seven-figure coins, and at one point were in possession of the most expensive rare coin on the planet. Coin collectors know them as a company that can source a huge number of rarities from all corners of the globe.
The customer feedback has also been largely good. While it’s hard to find reviews on some third party websites, the BBB has logged a few dozen reviews, most of which are glowingly positive. There are no BBB complaints as of writing, and the company maintains an A+ rating with the organization.
Overall, we do recommend this company. It has policies and practices that have stood the test of time. But we also think that there’s more here for coin collectors than for IRA seekers. There are some companies that have dedicated IRA services, which are much more comprehensive than the offerings made by Blanchard Gold. If you want to open a gold IRA, we recommend working with one of these.
Don't forget to checkout our highest recommended precious metals investment companies if you want to move forward with an investment!