Both the economy and the financial markets move in major cycles that can exert significant influences on long-term investment returns should an investor not recognize their existence.  It is our contention at Wexford Capital Management ( WCM ) that we have entered such a major secular period beginning in early 2000 to this day.  Whether one labels today's financial market environment as a bull or bear market or today's economy as a full-fledged recovery or an intermittent spurt in activity is really immaterial to the ultimate decision to undertake critical investment portfolio diversification into Tangible or Hard Assets.  Risk reduction is one of the time-tested tenets of successful investment management.  When there is a body of reliable evidence as to extended valuation levels in traditional investments, stocks, bonds, emerging market debt, or even real estate, it behooves the prudent investor to lower overall investment risk through diversification.

By selecting and acquiring negatively correlated asset classes such as certified pre-1933 U.S. rare coins, precious metals bullion coins & bars, and GIA-certified fancy colored diamonds, an investor is making a conscious decision to seek greater risk-to-reward values in non-extended, non-traditional investment areas.

It is not by accident that WCM has selected these 3 key Tangible Asset classes upon which to concentrate.  Over 2 decades of investing experience and market research have resulting in finding relatively liquid and bargain-priced asset classes that have an excellent probability of performing well in the difficult decade the advisor sees ahead.  And these assets do not rely upon potentially unreliable financial data to determine valuations or a "promise to pay".

Investing in U.S. rare coins has long been a very successful pursuit for primarily skilled collectors who have acquired the expertise to determine relative values for different rare coins based upon years of actual trading experience. Today, however, it is possible for collectors and investors to duplicate this expertise by buying only third-party grading services' certified and encapsulated U.S. rare coins and by enlisting the professional advice of nationally recognized and trusted experts in the field of numismatics.  It is not sufficient to just buy a slabbed, graded rare coin, but one that has been graded by a recognized, independent expert in the field of numismatics.  A high-pressure salesman from a high-volume coin dealer is usually nothing more than that, a salesman with totally insufficient numismatic knowledge. 

Since asset prices are determined by supply and demand, why not consider an asset class such as U.S. rare coins that has a finite potential supply and steadily increasing demand in the U.S. today?  After years of research and first-hand trading of P.C.G.S., N.G.C. and I.C.G. certified  U.S. rare coins, Wexford Capital Management established its own well-research program in 1997 for investing in certified pre-1933 gold and silver U.S. rare coins.  The advisor used his own money to weed out the slick from the trustworthy sources of truly rare, problem-free and original rare coins.  Unfortunately, out of an initial field of 7 major national coin dealers, only two coin buyers survived the rigors of complete trustworthiness AND numismatic expertise, not to mention fair pricing.  To say that it is a jungle out there in coin world is an understatement, and the school of hard knocks can be very expensive for an investor or collector placing his or her hard-earned money in the wrong hands.  Besides "reading the book before buying the coin", read the signals from the prospective dealer before dealing with him.

he initial purpose of the TANGIBLE ASSET PROGRAM at WCM was to provide both investors and collectors with an unbiased professional service for the acquisition of scarce, high-quality certified U.S. rare coins.  Besides being able to hold these truly rare objects of beauty and history in the palm of their hand, investors and collectors are able to prudently diversify their investment portfolios into highly collectible "tangible" or "hard" assets.  As graphically depicted in our Performance History section, the popular 12-Piece U.S. Gold Set in the uncirculated  or gem-quality grade of Mint State 65 has outperformed stocks over the last 30 years. This is a well-documented fact that most financial asset investors have not recognized.  Furthermore, there are additional documented examples of investors obtaining annual compound rates of return with pre-1933 U.S. rare coins comprised of both gold and silver that are well in excess of returns available through only investing in equities or financial assets.  Diversifying one's investment assets into tangible assets can pay, not to mention the enjoyment and education afforded collectors through the artistry of the minting process itself and the historical significance surrounding these miniature works of art in silver and gold.