Capital at risk. Physical gold and whisky casks are not regulated investments. The value of investments can go down as well as up. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
Oak & Mason sources, stores and insures physical assets for UK clients: casks in HMRC-bonded warehouses in Scotland, and Royal Mint gold allocated in a London vault.
Guide
A short guide to UK gold
Sovereigns, Britannias and their tax treatment. Sent by email.
Gold, from
£1,200
Casks, from
£4,500
Oak & Mason works with UK savers who want something tangible. We select the cask or the coins, arrange storage and insurance with an independent bonded warehouse or a London vault, and put every document in your name. The tax position is set out before you commit.
Whisky casks
New-make spirit from a working distillery, filled into oak and left to mature in an HMRC-bonded warehouse. We select the cask, arrange storage and insurance, and manage the paperwork through to sale.
The warehouse, which is independent of us, records the cask in your name on its own delivery order.
From £4,500 for a cask in your name.
Casks currently availableUK gold
Bullion coins struck by The Royal Mint. As UK legal tender, a gain on them is generally outside Capital Gains Tax, and there is no VAT on purchase.
We hold them in a London vault, allocated to you by name and fully insured, or deliver them to you by insured courier.
From £1,200. A single coin, or a holding built up over time.
About UK goldCapital at risk. Physical gold is not a regulated investment. The value of investments can go down as well as up. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
Tax treatment
Whisky casks. HMRC treats a maturing cask as a wasting asset, the same rule that applies to a vintage car, so a gain when you sell usually falls outside Capital Gains Tax.
UK gold coins. Sovereigns and Britannias are legal tender, so a gain when you sell is generally outside Capital Gains Tax, and there is no VAT on purchase.
Tax, explainedTax rules can change and how they apply depends on your personal circumstances. We are happy to walk through this with you.
Set out in full before you commit, and the same on every page.
Minimum holding
Gold from £1,200. Whisky casks from £4,500, for a full cask in your name.
£1,200
Held in your name
Casks on the bonded warehouse’s own paperwork; coins on the vault’s allocation register. Nothing sits on our balance sheet.
100%
Storage and insurance
Included for the first twelve months, then a flat annual fee, quoted in advance.
£0
Everything around the asset: sourcing, custody, insurance, documentation and, when the time comes, the sale. Your account lists each cask and each coin, and what you paid.
Casks rest in HMRC-bonded warehouses in Scotland. Gold is allocated in a London vault, or delivered to you by insured courier.
Three stages, each handled by a member of the team.
Stage one
A short questionnaire of around ten minutes on your budget, your horizon and what you hope to achieve. A written recommendation follows within one working day, naming specific casks, specific coins, or both.
Within one working day · No charge, no obligation
Stage two
Prices and fees are quoted in full before you decide. Choose a single coin, a whole cask, or both, and pay by bank transfer.
Before you commit
Stage three
Your cask is recorded in your name at the bonded warehouse; your gold is vaulted in London, or delivered to you. When you decide to sell, we find the buyer and manage the transfer.
For as long as you hold
For a cask, the bonded warehouse issues a delivery order in your name. The warehouse is independent of us and holds the cask on that basis. For gold, your coins are recorded against your name on the vault’s allocation register, or delivered to you and held at home.
Gold from £1,200. Whisky casks from £4,500, for a cask in your name.
Gold sold back to us usually pays within three to five working days. A cask buyback usually pays within fourteen days, and a sale to a private buyer typically takes four to eight weeks. Cleared funds are paid to your nominated bank account, less a selling fee quoted in advance.
Prices can fall as well as rise. What you sell for depends on the market at the time.
Yes, by insured courier, signed for and tracked. Many clients keep their coins in the vault for the insurance; others prefer to hold them at home.
Your assets are not on our balance sheet. A cask is held at the bonded warehouse in your name, on the warehouse’s own paperwork; gold is allocated to you on the vault’s register. In either case the custodian would deal directly with you, or with an appointed administrator, to release what is yours.
A fifteen-minute call with a member of the team, without obligation. We answer your questions; the decision remains yours.
