The Perth Mint

The Perth Mint

The Perth Mint is Australia's oldest operating mint, tracing its history back to Great Britain's Royal Mint. It remained under British control until 1970 when it became an independent mint. To this day, The Perth Mint operates under the same premises as when it began. Today, The Perth Mint provides refining, assaying and other services to the Precious Metals industry while also serving as a depository.

History of The Perth Mint

Sir John Forrest laid The Perth Mint’s foundation in 1896. Its purpose was to service the quickly growing population in Western Australia, which was exploding due to the discovery of Gold deposits in surrounding areas. Three years later, The Perth Mint opened. Money for which miners could exchange their Gold was in short supply in that era so miners brought the fruits of their labor to The Perth Mint, where it was minted into Gold coins.

The Post-Sovereign Era

In 1931, the British Empire withdrew sovereigns from circulation, so The Perth Mint began to produce a range of Gold and Silver coins in addition to refining Gold. In this era, The Perth Mint became a recognized standard when it comes to the value of Gold. The mint reached new heights in 1957, producing what some have called “the purest of all Gold” in the form of a 13 oz (400 gram) proof “plate” containing .999999 fine Gold. The Royal Mint was so impressed with the purity, they ordered some as a benchmark for their own standards.

Powered By Its Own Steam

Control of The Perth Mint passed from British ownership to the Government of Western Australia in 1970. Seventeen years later, the Australian Parliament passed an act creating the Gold Corporation. The Department of the Treasury enabled The Perth Mint to both mint and market Gold coins, Silver coins and Platinum coins. These coins’ value would be backed by the government, enabling them to function as legal tender in addition to investment vehicles for Precious Metals enthusiasts around the world. The first day of trading was a wild success, yielding the sale of 155,000 ounces of Gold totaling $103 million (AUD) in profit.