Precious Metals & Coins merchant accounts
Merchant accounts for gold and silver dealers, coin shops, and precious metals investment platforms. A Precious Metals & Coins merchant account is a dedicated high-risk merchant account built to accept credit card and ACH payments with stable, long-term processing — specially underwritten to support legal card settlement without sudden freezes, holds, or rolling terminations.
About the Precious Metals & Coins category
Precious metals and coin dealers process transactions in an asset whose price moves daily, creating a real credit-risk window between card authorization and physical delivery — a buyer who locks in a price today but doesn't receive coins or bullion for one to several weeks has every incentive to dispute the charge if spot prices drop in the meantime. Average ticket sizes in this category run far above typical retail, which alone triggers fraud-scoring alerts at standard banks regardless of legitimacy. There's a real compliance layer too: under the Bank Secrecy Act, dealers who buy and sell more than the regulatory threshold in covered precious metals, stones, or jewels in a year are required to register as a BSA-regulated 'dealer in precious metals' and maintain a written AML program, which most mainstream acquirers have no process to evaluate. Dealers who sell on a leveraged or margin basis without arranging actual delivery within the short window the Commodity Exchange Act requires can also find their sales treated as a regulated commodity contract subject to CFTC oversight, a structure most payment processors want no part of. Layer in genuine counterfeit exposure — tungsten-filled fake bars and clad coins are a documented problem in the industry — and it's clear why this category needs acquirers who evaluate the business rather than decline it on ticket size alone. Gray Merchants is a payment ISO providing merchant services to precious metals and coin dealers, with banking relationships built around high-ticket authorization and extended delivery timelines.
Every account is placed as a true high-risk merchant account with underwriting matched to your model — not a one-size-fits-all aggregator that can freeze funds without warning. Pair card acceptance with proactive chargeback prevention and low-cost ACH processing to keep more revenue settling on time.
Why Precious Metals & Coins gets declined by standard processors
It is not your business — it is the category. Mainstream processors use blunt, automated filters that flag these characteristics without a human ever reviewing your file.
How we approve and place your Precious Metals & Coins merchant account
High-ticket merchant accounts with per-transaction authorization limits sized to real bullion and numismatic order values.
Secure delivery tracking integration providing carrier and insurance documentation for use in card network dispute representment.
Extended delivery underwriting that accounts for multi-week shipping timelines on insured physical metal shipments.
Support structuring BSA/AML documentation for dealers who meet the precious-metals-dealer registration threshold, including transaction monitoring and recordkeeping practices.
Guidance on delivery-timing structures that keep transactions outside CFTC-regulated commodity contract territory when actual delivery is intended.
Precious Metals & Coins sub-segments we support
We accommodate specific sub-segments globally, matching each to an acquirer that understands its risk profile.
What you'll need to apply
A short online application (about 5 minutes) plus the documents below. All are optional at submission — you can apply first and send documents after — but complete files get decisions fastest.
What to expect on pricing
Precious Metals & Coins accounts are priced through interchange-plus pricing — you see the bank's base rate plus a fixed, disclosed markup, not a blended rate that hides the breakdown. Whether a rolling reserve applies, and its terms, is set at underwriting based on your specific volume, average ticket, and processing history. Lower-risk profiles within this category often carry no reserve, while newer accounts or heavier chargeback histories may start with one that reduces or clears once a track record is established.
Every rate, fee, and reserve term is disclosed in writing before you sign anything.
More high-risk verticals we place
Precious Metals & Coins merchant account FAQ
Can precious metals dealers support high-ticket single transactions on their merchant account?
Yes. We place precious metals accounts with acquiring banks that specifically approve high-ticket authorization limits for the category. The exact ceiling depends on your processing history, documentation, and delivery timelines, and is set in writing with the bank at underwriting.
Do we need to register as a BSA precious metals dealer?
If your annual purchases and sales of covered precious metals, stones, or jewels exceed the Bank Secrecy Act's regulatory threshold, yes — you're required to register as a dealer and maintain a written AML program with recordkeeping and reporting procedures. We help you determine whether you're over that line and, if so, prepare the documentation acquirers will want to see.
How do we defend chargebacks when a buyer disputes a bullion shipment claiming non-delivery?
Integrate your fulfillment tracking with your payment gateway so every transaction record automatically captures the carrier tracking number, insurance certificate, and delivery confirmation. That documentation, combined with your signed terms of sale disclosing price-lock timing, is generally sufficient to reverse non-delivery disputes under card network rules.