Vaultoro

Vaultoro is a digital platform that enables trading, investing, and saving in precious metals (gold and silver) alongside digital assets like Bitcoin. Founded on January 25, 2018, and based in the United Kingdom, the company describes itself as a way for individuals to easily buy, sell, and trade allocated gold bullion that is stored as legal property in the user's name within professional vaulting facilities. It also offers services for silver storage, though physical delivery is not available for silver.

The platform provides a range of trading pairs that pit precious metals against cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies, such as GOLDBTC, GOLDSILV, EUROBTC, and others. It operates as an exchange where users can trade these assets at spot prices, with fees determined by trading volume and pair. Vaultoro also offers an OTC service for larger or more discreet transactions.

As of our review, Vaultoro does not hold any regulatory licenses from UK authorities or other major financial regulators. The broker is registered in the United Kingdom as a company, but this does not equate to financial regulation. Traders should be aware that the absence of a regulatory license means there is no independent oversight of the platform's operations or client fund segregation. FXCanary's Scam Risk Score of 42/100 (Guarded) reflects the lack of regulation and the need for caution.

The company does maintain a support center with detailed articles on account security, withdrawal confirmations, and auditing of precious metals. However, potential users are advised to verify the platform's current regulatory status independently and consider the risks inherent in trading on an unregulated exchange.

Vaultoro offers a unique set of trading instruments that combine precious metals and digital currencies. The available pairs include gold versus Bitcoin (GOLDBTC), Dash (GOLDDASH), Ethereum (GOLDETH), and silver (GOLDSILV); silver versus Bitcoin (SILVBTC), Dash (SILVDASH), Ethereum (SILVETH); and cryptocurrencies against fiat (EUROBTC, EURODASH, EUROETH). This allows traders to speculate on the relative value of gold and silver against leading cryptocurrencies, as well as crypto-to-crypto pairs.

Trading is conducted at spot prices with a fee structure that ranges up to 0.50% maker/taker for certain pairs, with lower fees potentially available based on 30-day trading volume. The platform does not appear to offer leveraged trading or CFDs, focusing instead on fully collateralized spot trading.

Vaultoro provides a web-based trading interface and a mobile app (iOS) for portfolio management and news. The platform also offers a comprehensive REST API for automated trading and integration. All users can access the same core services, with no distinct account tiers mentioned in the known facts. Account registration is straightforward, requiring an email and identity verification to comply with anti-money laundering (AML) requirements.

The company emphasizes transparency regarding gold storage, offering auditing services to verify that vaulted gold is genuinely held. Users can request physical delivery of gold (minimum 100 grams) for a fee, although the company suggests most users prefer to sell their vaulted gold on the market.

Funding methods are not explicitly detailed in the available information, but the platform supports deposits and withdrawals in cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies. The API documentation mentions wallet addresses for assets, indicating that users can deposit crypto assets. Withdrawals to new addresses require email confirmation as a security measure.

For fiat transactions, the presence of fiat pairs (e.g., EUROBTC) suggests that users can deposit and withdraw euros, but specific methods (bank transfer, credit card) are not confirmed. Given the lack of regulatory status, users should exercise caution and verify available deposit/withdrawal options directly with the broker.

Vaultoro is aimed at individuals interested in combining precious metals investing with cryptocurrency trading. It appeals to those who want to hold allocated gold or silver without the hassle of physical storage, while also having the flexibility to trade these assets against digital currencies. The platform may also attract crypto traders looking for a way to hedge into physical commodities.

Due to the lack of regulation and the niche product offering, Vaultoro is best suited for experienced traders who understand the risks of unregulated platforms and who are specifically interested in the gold-crypto crossover. Beginners or those seeking a fully regulated environment may want to consider alternatives.