"I believe the COMEX claims to have about 1% of the contracts represented by physical gold. I know that IAU and GLD claim to have 100% of their shares represented by physical gold. I don't trust either of them very much, but COMEX doesn't even pretend to have the gold, so they are even less des...

KBG, agreed. I don't know what else to say. Comical indeed. I would just add that the question becomes if you want to deal with the futures markets and rollover vs not.

To be a bit snarky, gold is traded at the COMEX exchange. CBOE has a gold volatility product. As far as it being a gambling product, you could also call IAU and GLD the same thing. You are relying on the exchange and clearing company blowing up or not. With all the regulation and capital requirement...

Hello,

Does anyone have experience with bullion vault (https://www.bullionvault.com/). The pricing seems good and I like the fact that you can pick a vault outside of the US. The gold is "allocated" and they are open for trading 24 hours. Any thoughts?

Ok, thank you. BTW, love your calculators.

MG, is it me or does 12+2+2+7+3+35+9+20+11= 101? Not being snarky just does not add up.

Desert, thank you for your insight.

I have used tools like the portfolio visualizer to back test different portfolios. I have not found one that also showed a maximum draw down calculation. I would like to see how this portfolio's draw down compares to a true PP. Any recommendations on a calculator? Has anyone calculated draw down for...

Ozzy, is this the mix you're looking at now? 25% GLD 25% Wellesley 25% TLT 25% VTI If so, it certainly did well in the past.  I do a lot of back-testing as I'm trying to figure out the best portfolio for my family, even though I know that back-testing can lead investors down a bad path at times.  I...

I do not think higher worth posters should not post amounts, it makes the discussion more valid. If we don't fully understand the situation, it is hard to make recommendations. I appreciate this particular topic as I have considered it as well, although I have less and am probably older and less wise.

Storm, Believe it or not, I am not targeting you. I have been a long time lurker here, but today started posting. The algo traders and HFT's have only been a factor in the last 10 years. Before that, somehow stock was stock and derivatives contracts were transacted every day for well over a hundred ...

This falls under the jurisdiction of the CFTC. The CFTC has a weak and incapable leader. None of the traders I know are looking for a government bailout. They would like to know why this was allowed to happen, know that it cannot happen again, and who is going to pay for it criminally. Corzine is 10...

Derivatives traders are sophisticated investors and know how to pick a firm to do business with. However, that does not mean that they should suffer losses from theft differently than an "unsophisticated" or retail investor. There is no possible way to know that your firm would stoop so lo...

Storm,

These accounts are not covered by the SIPC. SIPC does not cover derivatives accounts. These people are at the mercy of the bankruptcy trustee and how much money is returned (currently at 72%) as of today. Corzine lost money that was not his to lose, and is a huge criminal!