NatGold Miners are primarily gold exploration companies or producers that focus on developing new or acquiring existing gold deposits with National Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101) certified resources. Operating within jurisdictions with NatGold legislation, their main activity is “swapping or exchanging” mining titles for an equivalent quantity of NatGold coins through tokenization. This method bypasses traditional gold mining by utilizing legal frameworks that allow the digital tokenization of in-ground gold resources. Consequently, these resources are mined digitally in an ESG-friendly manner, avoiding the negative environmental and social impacts typically associated with physical extraction. This process effectively unlocks gold’s monetary value without the detrimental effects. NatGold Miners are instrumental in the expansion of the NatGold ecosystem, fostering the sustainable and digital monetization of gold resources.

The Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards (CRIRSCO) is a pivotal non-profit organization dedicated to harmonizing global mining reporting practices. It comprises representatives from National Reporting Organizations (NROs) from various countries, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, and South Africa. CRIRSCO provides the International Reporting Template (IRT), a framework that aligns national and regional standards into a globally recognized guideline, ensuring consistency and comparability in the reporting of mineral estimates, resources, and reserves worldwide.

Although CRIRSCO doesn’t have a central physical headquarters, it operates through its member organizations spread across these countries. This template aids in maintaining transparency and reliability in public reporting, which is crucial for investor trust and regulatory effectiveness in the mining sector. CRIRSCO’s international collaborations and its endorsement by global entities underline its significant role in shaping mining standards globally.

NatGold mining is considered environmentally, socially, and governance (ESG)-friendly because it promotes the monetization of natural gold resources without the physical extraction of gold from the earth. This innovative approach involves the tokenization of National Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101) certified gold resources, which are kept in their natural state underground. Unlike traditional gold mining, NatGold mining does not involve the environmentally and socially detrimental activities typically associated with the extraction and processing of physical gold, such as land degradation, water pollution, and the displacement of communities.

Furthermore, NatGold mining eliminates the need for the extensive security measures, transportation, storage, and insurance required for physical gold, thereby reducing the carbon footprint and enhancing the sustainability of gold as a financial asset. By leveraging digital tokenization, NatGold provides a stable, secure, and flexible supply of monetary assets that meets modern financial system demands without the negative environmental and social impacts of traditional gold mining practices. This positions NatGold as a pivotal component in sustainable finance, offering an ESG-friendly alternative to conventional methods of gold monetization.

To ensure the NatGold industry’s integrity and sustainability, it’s critical to eliminate ongoing state fees and royalties tied to traditional mining titles. Such ongoing annual costs, if applied, necessitate the issuance of new NatGold coins to cover them, risking the one-to-one correspondence between NatGold coins and certified gold resources. This could potentially dilute NatGold coins’ monetary integrity by introducing the possibility of inflation within the ecosystem. Therefore, abolishing these fees and royalties is paramount to preserving NatGold coins as a reliable and inflation-resistant store of value, safeguarding against the depreciation that could arise from ongoing state-imposed costs.

How is the baseline intrinsic value of NatGold calculated?

The baseline intrinsic value of NatGold is calculated using a global per ounce average profit comparative methodology developed by the International NatGold Council. This method assesses the profit potential of NatGold by comparing the global average cost of gold production, as indicated by the All-In Sustaining Cost (AISC), against the current market price of gold. This approach provides a robust framework for establishing the minimum intrinsic value of NatGold coins, emphasizing their potential profitability in the global market.

Calculating Production Costs: The All-In Sustaining Cost (AISC) is used as a key metric in this comparison. AISC is a global weighted average calculated quarterly by the World Gold Council, based on the reported costs of each publicly reporting mining company for that period. This figure reflects the comprehensive cost faced by publicly reporting gold mining companies to mine, refine, and market one Troy ounce of gold.

Above Ground Market Price Reference: The market price used in this calculation is derived from the latest daily average price for a Troy ounce of gold, as reported by authoritative sources like the London Bullion Market Association and the NYMEX spot gold price.

Intrinsic Price Value Baseline: For example, employing a 90-day AISC of US$1,342 for Q2, 2024, and a hypothetical market price of US$2,200 per ounce, the intrinsic profitability is calculated by subtracting the most recent quarterly global weighted average AISC from the market price. In this instance, the average global profit would be $858 per ounce. This serves as the baseline intrinsic value of gold before the expenditure of US$1,342 to physically extract the gold via traditional mining methods.

NatGold’s approach diverges from traditional practices by focusing exclusively on digital mining certified gold resources in an ESG-friendly way. Essentially, the intrinsic baseline value of an ounce of NatGold is theoretically equal to the average per ounce profit realized by global gold producers, which is calculated by subtracting the average global cost of extraction from the prevailing market price of gold.

This positions NatGold as a sustainable crypto-commodity, capable of attracting a significant ESG premium, potentially even surpassing traditional gold’s market value as global sustainability awareness increases. This valuation transcends conventional production cost-profit analyses, advocating for NatGold’s price to be independently determined by its own merits as a sustainable and innovative financial asset.