The very first precious coin was issued at the end of the nineteenth century in tsarist Russia. Shortly before the release, the development of a large platinum mine in Nizhny Tagil began, which is why the merchants Demidov, who are the owners of a rich deposit, proposed to start producing money from platinum. Their proposal was approved by the government of tsarist Russia, hence the release of investment coins from precious metals. In modern Russia, operations with investment coins for individuals were not available until 1996.
“Uncirculated” (translated from uncirculated from English) are precious coins that have not yet been circulated, and therefore have no damage or scratches. Coins of this quality, as a rule, belong to the category of investment, that is, they are specially created by the bank to create a personal savings fund by the population. Coins made of precious metals represent an excellent alternative to deposits in gold bullion, since all operations with coins with the technical characteristics and status of coins made of precious metals are exempt from VAT (Article 149, part two of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). Thus, it is possible to make deposits in precious metals without VAT.
Given that the market value of precious gold coins in gold is almost in line with world gold prices on the London Stock Exchange, it is therefore possible to use precious metal coins as a means of accumulation. Operations with precious coins have been carried out in Russia since the beginning of this century, and only very recently a permit was accepted to export coins from precious metals in the amount equivalent to $ 10,000. In this case, the physical circulation of coins is not limited to the territory of the Russian Federation, which greatly expands their capabilities as an investment tool. Today in our country are issued coins from precious metals for investment and collection purposes (commemorative). In order not to confuse these two concepts, we will try to figure out their origin.
Firstly, commemorative collection coins are always issued for any particular event, while investment items do not have such a link. Secondly, the cost of commemorative coins is much higher than investment, since in this case artistry and technological sophistication of the sample are taken into account. Collectible commemorative coins are created using the highest coinage quality (proof), which inevitably affects their value. The basic cost of investment copies is calculated at the cost of the precious metal from which they are made. And thirdly, according to Russian laws, operations with collectible coins are subject to VAT, while operations with investment coins are not subject to this rule.
There is no unambiguous definition of investment coins in the legislation of the Russian Federation. But the Tax Code, which provides a list of operations exempted from VAT, has a clause that spells out what operations with precious coins are exempt from value added tax. According to this clause, only operations with coins from precious metals that are not collectible are exempted from VAT. There is also a definition regulating that collectible coins include only those specimens that are minted using special technologies that provide a mirror surface. It follows that investment coins are called precious metals, which according to the method of minting and technical parameters meet the requirements for investment objects.