Loading ...Major international players in the precious metals industry — and some local upstarts — are hoping to get a piece of Texas’ plan to launch an official state gold bullion depository, and the wide range of pitches they’re making suggests even basic details of the project remain up in the air.
More than a dozen companies responded to a recent request from Comptroller Glenn Hegar for input on the first-of-its-kind project. Gov. Greg Abbott signed House Bill 483 in June, directing Hegar to set up the country’s only state-run bullion depository. State Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, began pushing the idea in 2013 but was only able to draw enough support from other lawmakers by requiring that the private sector run the depository and charge fees to cover its costs.
“With the passage of this bill, the Texas Bullion Depository will become the first state-level facility of its kind in the nation, increasing the security and stability of our gold reserves and keeping taxpayer funds from leaving Texas to pay for fees to store gold in facilities outside our state,” Abbott said when he signed the bill.
The depository won’t just store state gold and other precious metals. The law requires that individual customers, and even school districts, be allowed to open accounts. Capriglione has described it as a bank that doesn’t do any lending.
With few firm details in place, the project is drawing a wildly eclectic range of proposals, some more ambitious than others.
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