Australian investors will soon have access to a gold-backed exchange-traded fund, which claims to allow easy redemption of investments in physical gold bullion.
The Australian Midas Fund, which will be managed by Midas Management Group, forecasts to have $450 million under management in its first year.
Chairman Anthony Fitzgerald said that 97 per cent of the fund’s net asset value would be held in physical gold bullion bars, which would be owned by investors but stored offshore by a Swiss asset management group.
He said the key advantage was that investors would be allocated bullion in line with shareholdings, which they could then redeem in cash or physical good delivery bullion.
The Australian Midas Fund will be selling 12 million transferable, redeemable preference shares in its initial offering, with subsequent offerings to Asia, Europe and America shortly after.
The group is currently finalising its listing compliance with the Australian Securities Exchange and contract negotiations with bullion asset management groups, with the aim to launch the fund in March 2012.
