Sustainable gold: Valcambi leaves the Swiss Better Gold Association
Keystone-SDA
Ticino-based precious metals refiner Valcambi has decided to pull out of the Swiss Better Gold Association. The company said it’s no longer appropriate to collaborate with the organisation, which aims to improve working and living conditions in mining communities.
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“This decision has been carefully thought through, following a detailed analysis of our future prospects and priorities,” said Valcambi chief operating officer Simone Knobloch in a statement on Wednesday.
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The group joined the Swiss Better Gold Association (SBGA) in 2015 and has since helped set up a certified supply chain between small-scale miners in Colombia and an unnamed luxury brand, using its own refining facilities. The company assures that its withdrawal from the SBGA doesn’t mark the end of its commitment to responsible sourcing or improving conditions in artisanal mines.
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Valcambi had already parted ways with the Swiss Association of Precious Metals Manufacturers and Traders (ASFCMP) in autumn 2023, due to irreconcilable differences over the issue of gold from questionable sources. Unlike the umbrella organisation, Valcambi refused to exclude certain countries of origin from its raw gold supply.
Just before this, the press uncovered documents revealing that, despite its public commitments, the Ticino refinery continued to import gold from Kaloti, a Dubai-based firm suspected of being deeply involved in money laundering and trading gold from conflict zones, even after 2019.
Translated from French with DeepL/sp
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