However, all three gold ETFs rely on American rule of law to enforce ownership claims, Lee said.
“The real reason to diversify geographically is concerns about the physical safety of gold held in New York or London,” the analyst wrote. “Gimmickry aside, SGOL stands on its own as a reasonable way to get gold exposure. It has done a good job of tracking the spot price of gold, is fairly liquid, and charges a competitive fee.”
SGOL holds about $2 billion in assets and charges an expense ratio of 0.39%.
GLD is the largest gold ETF with assets of $74 billion and fees of 0.4%. The iShares gold ETF, IAU, holds $11.2 billion in assets and levies a fee of 0.25%.
ETFS Physical Swiss Gold Shares
Full disclosure: Tom Lydon’s clients own GLD.