# iShares Gold Trust Shares > Clarifo company profile — qualitative business description generated from > the company's filings. Financial statements, charts and ratios are > available on Clarifo (https://www.clarifo.com/en/companies/iShares Gold Trust Shares). ## Overview iShares Gold Trust is a grantor trust that holds physical gold bullion and issues shares representing fractional beneficial interests in that gold. It is designed to track the price of gold, less expenses and liabilities, rather than to actively manage a portfolio or generate operating profits. ## Products & services • Physical gold bullion held in trust • Exchange-traded shares on NYSE Arca (IAU) • Continuous creation/redemption in 50,000-share baskets • Passive exposure to the LBMA Gold Price • Custodied gold storage and daily NAV calculation - **Physical gold exposure** (0%) — The Trust’s core asset is allocated gold bullion held by its custodian on behalf of shareholders. - **Exchange-traded shares** (0%) — Shares of the Trust trade on NYSE Arca and provide investors with tradable gold exposure. - **Creation and redemption mechanism** (0%) — Authorized Participants can create or redeem baskets of 50,000 shares against gold. - **Trust administration and custody** (100%) — The Sponsor, Trustee, and Custodian administer, value, and safeguard the gold holdings. - Physical gold bullion held in trust - Exchange-traded shares on NYSE Arca (IAU) - Continuous creation/redemption in 50,000-share baskets - Passive exposure to the LBMA Gold Price - Custodied gold storage and daily NAV calculation ## Customers The Trust’s investors are primarily market participants seeking direct, exchange-traded exposure to gold prices without holding bullion themselves. Its shares are created and redeemed only by Authorized Participants, while secondary-market buyers and sellers include institutions and retail investors using NYSE Arca. The product is used as a portfolio diversifier, inflation hedge, or tactical gold allocation. - **Secondary market investors** (primary) — Retail and institutional investors buy shares on NYSE Arca for liquid exposure to gold prices. - **Authorized Participants** (primary) — Broker-dealers create and redeem baskets against physical gold to support market liquidity and arbitrage. - **Portfolio allocators** (secondary) — Asset managers and advisers use the Trust for diversification, inflation hedging, or tactical gold positioning. - Retail investors buying exchange-traded gold exposure - Institutions using gold as a portfolio diversifier or hedge - Authorized Participants creating and redeeming baskets - Traders seeking liquid exposure to spot gold movements - Investors who prefer bullion-backed exposure over futures ## Geography The Trust is organized in the United States and trades on NYSE Arca, but its gold is custodied in London through JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A., London Branch. Its benchmark pricing depends on the London Bullion Market Association gold price, so the business is economically tied to global gold markets rather than a single operating geography. - United States domicile and NYSE Arca listing - Gold custody in London through the custodian - Pricing tied to LBMA Gold Price in London - Global investor base rather than local end markets - No operating manufacturing or sales footprint ## Strategy The Trust’s strategy is to maintain simple, low-friction exposure to physical gold through a passive structure that closely tracks bullion prices. Its operating model relies on authorized creation/redemption, daily NAV calculation, and secure custody rather than active portfolio management. - **Preserve tight tracking to gold prices** (short-term) — The Trust’s value proposition depends on minimizing tracking error versus bullion. - **Maintain liquidity and tradability** (short-term) — Secondary-market liquidity helps keep shares close to NAV and supports investor access. - **Protect custody and operational integrity** (medium-term) — The Trust depends on third-party service providers to safeguard bullion and process transactions. - Track gold prices as closely as possible, net of expenses - Use basket creation/redemption to support liquidity - Maintain secure custody and transparent gold holdings - Keep the structure passive and operationally simple - Rely on benchmark pricing and daily NAV publication ## Risks The Trust is exposed to gold price volatility because it is a passive vehicle and does not hedge or actively manage holdings. Its results also depend on third-party service providers, benchmark integrity, and the functioning of exchange trading and creation/redemption mechanics. - **Gold price volatility** [high] — The Trust is passive and fully exposed to movements in bullion prices without hedging. - **Premium/discount to NAV** [medium] — Shares trade on NYSE Arca while gold markets operate on different hours, which can widen spreads. - **Operational and custody risk** [high] — The Trust relies on the custodian, trustee, and other service providers for gold safekeeping and administration. - **Benchmark and valuation risk** [high] — NAV depends on the LBMA Gold Price, so disruptions or loss of confidence in the benchmark can affect valuation. - **Cybersecurity and technology risk** [medium] — The Trust depends on electronic communications, record-keeping, and market infrastructure. - Gold price declines directly reduce NAV and share value - Premiums/discounts can widen when gold markets and NYSE Arca are out of sync - Operational failures at the custodian, trustee, or service providers can disrupt the Trust - Benchmark issues in LBMA Gold Price could affect valuation and investor returns - Cybersecurity or technology failures could impair records or trading - Conflicts of interest may arise because the Sponsor manages other precious-metals products ## Accounting The most important accounting judgment is fair-value measurement of gold bullion using the LBMA Gold Price, which directly drives NAV and reported asset values. Because the Trust is a grantor trust with limited activities, accounting is relatively simple, but small changes in gold price, expenses, or liabilities can materially affect per-share value and period results. - **Fair value of gold bullion** — Primary driver of reported asset value and per-share NAV - **Expense accruals and liabilities** — Affects NAV and period-to-period comparability - **Temporary cash balances** — Can slightly alter asset mix and reported net assets - Gold bullion is marked to fair value using the LBMA Gold Price - NAV changes are driven mainly by bullion price movements and expenses - The Trust may hold cash temporarily, affecting asset composition - Sponsor fees and liabilities reduce net assets and NAV per share - Limited operations mean valuation judgments matter more than revenue recognition --- *Last updated: 2026-04-28T20:16:48.899859+00:00*