London, 12 May 2010

ETF Securities gold holdings soar to record $10.5bn as the gold price hits an all time high and inflows into its physically-backed gold ETCs climb nearly 600,000 ounces ($746mn) in four weeks, the largest monthly rise since August 2009. Total settled gold holdings in ETF Securities physical gold ETCs stand at 8.4mn ounces ($10.5bn), the largest gold ETF holdings in Europe and the second largest in the world. The rapid deterioration of Eurozone sovereign fundamentals has renewed investor appetite for 'hard assets', particularly precious metals as investors look to reduce their exposure to counterparty and currency depreciation risks.

The gold price has been hitting successive new highs in EUR, GBP and CHF but until 11 May had remained below its previous all-time high set in December 2009.

Trading volumes on ETF Securities ETC platform hits all-time high of $1.4bn. Trading volumes in ETCs are up over 90% over the past month. 70% of the rise is due to a surge in precious metals trading, with 50% attributable to gold. A wide range of ETCs saw turnover rise, ranging from platinum and palladium, to livestock and industrial metals. The rise appears part of a broader rise in market trading over the past few weeks and - in particular - strong demand for gold ETFs.

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