Recently, it has been reported that due to the closure of individual gold sales stores, some investors could not withdraw the investment gold bars entrusted in stores and suffered considerable losses.

The gold custody service involved in the above-mentioned incident is that the merchant promises consumers that they can hand over the investment gold bars they have purchased to the store and keep them on their behalf according to the agreed time limit. After expiration, they can pick up and renew the contract, or they can allow the store to buy back at real-time gold prices.

但是根据监管规定，Gold custody services are limited to financial institutions, and enterprises such as gold sales stores cannot carry out such business.

The "Notice on Matters Related to Gold Asset Management Business" previously issued by the People's Bank of China stipulates that gold asset management business refers to financial institutions such as banks, trusts, securities, funds, futures, insurance asset management institutions, and financial asset investment companies that accept the entrustment of investors and invest the entrusted investor's property in physical gold or gold products.

The "Notice" also clarifies that physical gold invested in gold asset management products should be registered and entrusted, and registration and custody services are only provided by financial institutions and gold trading venues approved by the State Council and financial regulatory authorities such as the Shanghai Gold Exchange.

Without business qualifications, some gold stores can carry out gold custody services for a long time. I can't help but ask, which aspect of supervision has not kept up?

In addition to qualification issues, fraud may also be involved. 正规黄金积存业务，是客户通过银行开立黄金积存账户，在一定期限内以定投或主动积存方式买入黄金，到期后的积存金可兑换为实物金或执行赎回、转让、质押等操作。此类业务并非稳赚不赔。

The so-called "gold custody services" of some gold stores not only promote no risk, but also promise to provide a certain investment return to the custody gold, which is suspected of illegal fund-raising. Previously, regulatory authorities in many places have issued illegal fund-raising risk warnings to warn of the risks of gold custody and remind people to verify whether relevant institutions have qualifications before investing in gold custody products to avoid falling into the fraud trap.

At present, many gold brand companies adopt a buyout sales model for franchise stores. Specifically, the brand company delivers goods to the franchise store. When the goods are delivered to the franchise store and the right to collect payment, the company transfers the main risks and rewards of the ownership of the goods to the channel, and the franchise store sells them independently and bears the risks independently.

As an independent legal person, a franchise store should bear corresponding responsibilities if it becomes insolvent or goes bankrupt. 但同时，在特许经营情况下，加盟商和总店整齐划一，消费者并不能够清晰识别二者背后的法律关系，品牌方在一定程度上为加盟店做了背书。

This reminds consumers that they need to be cautious when investing in gold and jewelry, and not blindly pursue high returns and ignore risks. At the same time, we should also strengthen our awareness of self-protection and choose formal channels to invest to avoid being used by illegal businesses.

For gold brand companies, it is necessary to further improve the franchise system and establish a strict review mechanism to ensure that the qualifications and reputation of franchise stores meet brand requirements. At the same time, it is necessary to establish an effective supervision mechanism to conduct regular inspections and evaluations of franchise stores 'operations. Any violations discovered must be corrected and dealt with in a timely manner, while maintaining the brand image and reputation, while effectively protecting the rights and interests of consumers.