Coming up this week, Assistant Business Editor Hearst Media Connecticut Richard Lee details the formation of an alternative money management fund built on rare coins. The fund appears to be looking to leverage both the collectible value and possibly the intrinsic metal value of gold and silver. Silver settled at better than $34 an ounce Tuesday and Gold was higher than $1,781 an ounce.
Here’s a peek at Rich’s article, for the full flip on it, check out the Business section in coming days.
By Richard Lee
Staff Writer
Dig deep under those cushions, you may be literally sitting on your nest egg, and a start-up Stamford investment firm could provide the help you need to manage your new-found wealth.
A new joint venture, Certified Assets Management International LLC has been launched by a team that includes a veteran professional rare coin dealer and a Wall Street money manager to assist investors with acquisition and management of numismatic and precious metals items.
CAMI is creating an assortment of products, services and investment funds including one that is looking to acquire up to $250 million of rare coins.
Principals Bob Higgins, president of Certified Assets Management Inc., in Wilmington, Del., and Alberto Washington, managing partner of Mercury Fund Management LLC, also a Delaware corporation, will formally announce the establishment of the Stamford-based business at the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Baltimore Expo, which runs from Thursday through Sunday.
“The investment community has a need for alternative investments that are truly uncorrelated with traditional investments,” Washington said. “Using rare coins as an asset class and investment vehicle provides an opportunity for investors to diversify their investment portfolios. We plan to have a diversified family of investment funds and services to be able to address alternative investments and financing needs, from the private investor to even institutional investors.”
Rare coins offer more investment stability than the equity market, he said.
“You have a very limited supply or rare coins in the market, and demand increases price. Rare coins have shown they are as good or a better hedge versus precious metals on a risk-adjusted basis, Washington said.
The custodian of the partnership assets initially will be First State Depository Co., a high security facility in Delaware that stores precious metals and rare coins for investment banks, brokerage firms, refining companies, commodity trading houses, precious metals retailers, coin dealers and individual investors.
CAMI will work with two coin grading firms, Professional Coin Grading Services, and Numismatic Guaranty Corp., to certify coins in its funds.
