They come in here, they inspect them [gold bars] and caress them Lorena BairdThe rich are driven here to inspect their gold. “They come in here, they inspect [their gold bars] and caress them,” says Lorena Baird, executive director of Baird & Co, the UK’s only gold refinery, which has been operating quietly in east London for half a century. “Gold is a hedge against inflation; gold is the safe haven.”There is gold everywhere in the Baird warehouse, where pawned jewellery is melted down and refined into fresh gold bars. As well as producing gold bars, the company also makes gold sovereigns, 50,000 rings a year and collectables on demand. The bucket of brown sand she is holding contains 6kg of gold (worth about £160,000).

Source: The Guardian December 26, 2017 11:15 UTC