The Beginner’s Guide to Buying Gold in Malaysia

Buying gold in Malaysia is not hard, but can be confusing for a beginner. So here’s a no-BS article outlying what you need to know about buying gold in Malaysia as an investor.

In this article, I will answer:

• Why buy gold as an investment (hint: you don’t have to)
• Why you don’t need to buy a lot of gold for investment
• How much gold to buy
• Where to buy investment-grade gold in Malaysia
• What happens after I buy gold in Malaysia as an investment? When do I sell?

Let’s go!

#1 – Why buy gold as an investment?

Actually, you don’t have to buy gold for your investment. In fact you can skip it. It’s not technically necessary. You can just focus on other savings/investment vehicles. Here are some options:

• 6 Best Savings Accounts in Malaysia to Put Your Emergency Funds
• 3 Best Investments in Malaysia (+ The Best Way to Invest Your Money)
• 18 Shariah-Compliant Investments in Malaysia for Halal Investing

You should also probably skip gold investment if you are still paying off high-interest debt (credit card, personal loan etc) and/or still building your 3-6 months emergency savings.

But if you’ve done that and pretty sure you want to venture into gold investment, then just remember…

#2 – You don’t need to buy a lot of gold for investment

Like other types of assets, gold investment is best used to diversify your investment portfolio. That just means, just a little bit is fine, not ALL of your savings should be allocated to it.

To make this clear:

• 100% of your money in cash = not good
• 100% of your money in stocks = not good
• 100% of your money in cryptocurrencies = not good
• 100% of your money in properties = not good
• 100% of your money in gold = also not good

Get the picture? Basically, putting 100% of your money in any ONE type of asset is not a good strategy.

But what’s a good %? That depends. Generally speaking, 5-10% of your overall portfolio is a safe amount. Depending on the situation, the % could go higher – talk to your financial planner.

#3 – How much gold to buy for investment

So, I mentioned 5-10% of your overall portfolio is a safe amount in the previous section. That means:

• If you have RM1000, then not more than RM50-100
• If you have RM5000, then not more than RM250-500
• If you have RM10,000, then not more than RM500-1000

Most (but not all) options to buy gold in Malaysia requires you to buy a minimum of 1 gram of gold, which as of writing time, costs around RM250 per gram. That means you may want to only consider getting gold when you have saved up RM5000 and above, so you have more options to choose from.

#4 – Where to buy gold in Malaysia for investment

There are quite a few options to buy gold in Malaysia. I’ll list them briefly, then expand further below:

1. Buy gold from banks
2. Buy gold from jewelry stores
3. Buy gold ETFs
4. Buy gold from agents of gold investment companies (I don’t really recommend this)

Let’s expand on each option:

#1 – Buy gold from banks

Many banks offer gold savings/investment accounts. Some options include:

• Maybank Islamic Gold Account (MIGA-i) – from RM10
• CIMB e-Gold Investment Account (e-GIA) – from 1 gram
• Public Bank Gold/eGold Investment Account – from 5 gram/ 1 gram
• UOB Gold Savings Accounts – from 5 gram
• Kuwait Finance House Gold Account-i – from 10 gram

There may be more, I’ll update this section as I find them 🙂

To open a gold savings/investment account from banks, simply:

• check the bank of your choice if they have one,
• open an account, and
• make the initial deposit to purchase your gold
• done!

These are probably the safest way to buy gold in Malaysia for investment purposes. The buy and sell price (also called margin) also tends to be better than other options in this list, plus you don’t have to keep the gold yourself (and worry about it being stolen).

But if digital gold if not your thing, and you prefer to HOLD the gold in your own hands, then…

#2 – Buy gold from jewelry stores

You can buy physical gold coins and gold jewelry (rings, bracelets, necklaces etc) from REPUTABLE jewelry stores. Some popular options include:

• Habib Official Store (Shopee | Lazada)
• Wah Chan Official Store (Shopee | Lazada)
• Poh Kong Official Store (Shopee | Lazada)
• Tomei Official Store (Shopee | Lazada)

The con of this option is you’ll probably most definitely pay a higher price per gram of gold, because there is design and craftmanship costs included. Someone had to make the pretty gold coins and jewelry.

Despite the con, this is definitely one of my favourite way to own gold investment. It’s literally investment that I can wear. In theory, I can wear my jewelry until I’m bored of it, then exchange it for another gold jewelry of similar price/weight – ta-da, a new pretty thing to wear at no/little additional cost to me 🙂

The most important thing to remember here is to get 916/22k or 999/24k gold ONLY. The rest – precious stones included – do not retain value as much as these, and NOT suitable as gold investment.

(Note: You can get gold-plated jewelry, precious stones like diamonds etc for daily/special wear of course. Just don’t expect them to retain or increase in value. In fact, they may be sold for only a fraction of their original price the moment you walk out the store.)

Note: You can also buy gold coins from other places than jewelry stores. But I’m prioritising brand reputation here.

The next option to buy gold in Malaysia for investment purposes is…

#3 – Buy gold ETFs

You can buy gold – and even silver ETFs – from various digital investment platforms.

Gold ETF is NOT a beginner-friendly option. I’d say this is for more experienced investors, because you do need to know:

1. What the heck are ETFs (exchange-traded funds), and
2. Why get gold ETFs instead of physical or digital gold (you can automate your purchase and DCA; you want gold mining ETFs, you have a CDS account, etc)

The easiest way to buy gold ETF is through:

• Wahed Invest – use code ‘surbin1’ during registration to get FREE RM10
• Versa Gold

I will keep to my promise and keep this article beginner-friendly, but if you are keen to learn more, you can read my How to Buy ETFs in Malaysia Easily and SAFELY article – see the can I invest in gold ETFs in Malaysia section.

#4 – Buy gold from agents of gold investment companies

Here are some options: Public Gold, Quantum Metal (you can also buy yourself through their digital platforms)

This is just my opinion, but don’t recommend this option. I just don’t see the point of buying gold from an agent. My reasons:

1. Agents are commission-driven. They probably won’t tell you to limit your gold purchase to 5-10% of your overall portfolio. Why would they? The more gold they sell to you, the more they make.
2. They might over-promise ROI. I saw one of the marketing materials and they assume gold returns at 8% per year?? That’s too optimistic..
3. It’s already so easy to purchase gold yourself?? I don’t get it, I really don’t.

But Suraya, some you may say, there are unique benefits. This one allows leverage*, and that one lets me pay for my gold in instalments**.

*I saw the presentation and not convinced by the leverage thing they offer. Sounds too good to be true.

**So does some gold jewelry shops – I don’t recommend it, but you can buy gold there for up to 24 months 0% instalment

So yeah, no for me. I’ll make a special exception *if* you meet a spectacular agent who provide you more value-added services, but otherwise still a hard no. Go ahead and use your play money if you still want.

#5 – What happens after I buy gold in Malaysia as an investment? When do I sell?

After you buy gold as an investment, ideally you do… nothing. That’s it.

If you buy physical gold (coin or jewelry), you can admire it or wear it, but otherwise you do nothing for at least 3-5 years or so. Hopefully by then the price have increased and you have the option to sell it for profit.

But… If you’re anything like me when I first started buying gold as investment, you’ll gain a sudden interest in any news related to gold, and especially news about the price. You keep thinking about when to sell and get profit. After all, that’s what investment means, right? To make profit?

Watching gold prices

If you are a beginner investor, the moment you hold gold, news about price increase will make you happy. Sometimes you’ll find yourself calculating your profits and grinning alone. You’ll be like, I bought 10 grams at RM250 per gram (example), now it’s RM300 per gram, I’ve made RM500 woo!

On the other hand, news about price tumbles will make you worry. I’ve had almost-sleepless nights, when I contemplate whether I should sell my gold or not.

Being tempted to buy and sell (aka trade) is normal

Little did I know this feeling is common not just for gold investment, but also stocks, cryptocurrencies, and so many other types of investment. It’s just something you have to go through when you first start out as an investor.  

I regret to say I did sell some of my gold, after only a few months of purchasing. I wish I hadn’t – should have reminded myself that gold is good for long-term investing. But at that time, what do I know right?

Since then, gold price has increased way more. Ah well, you learn from your mistakes. I’m not selling my remaining gold stash now yet.

Opinion: Gold investment is great for beginner investors

I do think that gold is a worthwhile investment for beginner investors, because the things you learn in the process can help you learn about the global commodities market, international supply and demand, trading price charts and investing strategies.

Over time, I’ve learned to be at peace with price movements, and to have more long-term view. I truly believe gold investing made me a more experienced investor.

So even if your gold stash doesn’t increase in value in 3-5 years (this may happen), I’d say the experience of owning it and learning is worth it. But of course, this was just my experience. You might have a different experience altogether, but either way you’ll learn 🙂

Do let me know if you have questions or other tips you may have about gold investment in Malaysia – just leave them in the comments section. Share this article around if it helped. All the best in your gold investment journey!