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Tokenized commodities

DGLD (Gold Token SA)

Not approved The evidence weighs against it
Verdict
Not approved
The evidence weighs against it
Who can freeze it
No freeze key
Withdrawals
Any holder may ask for the gold after KYC, AML and sanctions checks.
Reviewed
2026-09-23 · next 2026-12-23
Researched memo

Summary

Ketju does not approve DGLD: the same group makes, stores and counts the gold, and on Ethereum a single private key can mint, burn a holder’s tokens and replace the contract code. Gold Token SA of Geneva issues DGLD. Under Swiss law each token is proof of co-ownership of one fine troy ounce of specific PAMP gold bars, and title moves with the token. Of the small gold tokens Ketju has reviewed, DGLD gives the holder the strongest legal claim. MKS PAMP SA has owned Gold Token SA outright since November 2025. It makes the bars, keeps them in its own vault at Castel San Pietro and signs the bar list. Ketju found no published attestation of the bars by an independent firm. On 2026-09-23 there were 2,411.96 DGLD across Ethereum, Base and Solana, about $10.3 million of gold.

Research

How it works

Gold Token SA’s General Terms & Conditions (last updated July 2026) say the token “qualifies as a title of proof (art. 8 CC)” that the holder has acquired co-ownership rights (art. 646 CC) and indirect possession (art. 919 CC) of the gold. Each token stands for one fine troy ounce of LBMA Good Delivery gold, identified by bar serial number. Gold Token SA records it in its registry of co-ownership rights. A public Gold Mapper shows which bars a wallet co-owns. The terms state that DGLD is not a debt or equity claim on Gold Token SA and pays no return.

The holder owns the metal and has no claim on the company. The gold should therefore stay outside the estate if Gold Token SA or MKS PAMP fails. That protection depends on the registry. A co-owner who cannot show which bars are hers has a weaker claim than one whose name is on a bar list. The terms also make Gold Token SA the administrator of the co-ownership. Holders waive the right to dissolve it or to deal in the gold except by moving the token.

Size and holdings

The gold sits “in the GTSA vaults at the PAMP vaulting facility” at Via Alle Zocche 1, Castel San Pietro. MKS PAMP SA is the custodian. It issues the receipt of deposit before Gold Token SA mints, and it signs the bar list that the Gold Mapper is checked against. MKS PAMP also owns Gold Token SA. A November 2025 announcement says it “acquired full ownership” of the company, which a consortium of MKS PAMP, CoinShares and Blockchain.com launched in 2019.

The terms promise “periodic independent Gold audits.” The litepaper says the vaults are “subject to independent audits of physical holdings.” Neither names the auditor or links a report, and the site publishes none. Gold Token SA is supervised only for anti-money-laundering rules, through the VQF self-regulatory body.

Who controls it

Gold Token SA issues DGLD natively on each chain and does not bridge it. On Ethereum (0xA929…E9c8, 1,603.69 DGLD on 2026-09-23) and Base (0xe908…fB9A, 401.16 DGLD), the token is an upgradeable proxy. Transfers check a blacklist and a pause switch. The BURNER role burns the tokens tied to a bar from any address. The TOKEN_RECOVERER role moves a blacklisted address’s whole balance to a recovery address.

On Ethereum one key, 0xb1c1…8b9d, holds the admin, minter and burner roles. It also owns the proxy admin that can replace the code. On Base another single key, 0xe003…44a0, does the same. Separate single keys pause (0xf661…aa2), blacklist (0x5ce7…324) and recover (0xafea…df2) on both chains. The litepaper says issuance and burning run under multi-party controls, but the chain does not show them.

On Solana (dg1d…rTVz, 407.11 DGLD), DGLD is a Token-2022 mint. Its freeze and pause authorities are one-of-two multisigs. Its permanent delegate, which can move or burn any holder’s tokens, is a single key. The terms allow a freeze only for legal and regulatory reasons. They allow Gold Token SA to burn and re-issue tokens for a holder who lost a key “at its own and sole discretion.” Gold Token SA retired an earlier Base contract on 30 June 2026 and tells holders not to use it.

Eligibility

Gold Token SA issues new tokens only to authorised participants that deposit gold. Everyone else buys on Uniswap or Aerodrome, with no onboarding and no minimum. Gold Token SA says it does not target EU or EEA persons, and it names no other excluded place. Its documents neither admit nor bar US investors.

Withdrawals

Any holder may ask for the gold after KYC, AML and sanctions checks. Gold Token SA may burn the tokens and release bars ex works. The holder pays a 0.20% burning fee plus transport, insurance, customs and taxes. The litepaper describes this for whole Good Delivery bars of about 400 ounces, about $1.7 million at the 2026-09-23 price. Gold Token SA may instead send the holder to an approved partner. The partner delivers smaller bars or coins, down to one gram, for its own premiums.

Fees

Authorised participants pay a 0.20% creation fee, and redemption costs a 0.20% burning fee. There are no storage or management fees. In the terms’ word, the costs are “embedded” in the token.

Comparison

On paper DGLD’s claim is better than Tether Gold’s and close to PAX Gold’s. The holder has title to identified bars under a clear body of property law. Any verified holder can take delivery, and there are no fees. DGLD lacks the separation that would let anyone check that claim. The refiner that owns the issuer holds the bars and signs the list, and no independent report counts them. Single keys on Ethereum and Base can mint, burn and upgrade. PAX Gold publishes a monthly KPMG attestation of bars that an OCC-supervised trust bank holds, at a vault that Paxos does not own. The DGLD market is also thin: about $10 million outstanding, traded in DEX pools.

A client who wants gold is better served by a physically backed trust whose bars an independent custodian holds and an independent auditor counts. Ketju will review DGLD again if an independent firm attests the bar list against supply on a published schedule. Ketju will also review it again if the admin, minter, burner and upgrade powers move to a multisig or timelock that the chain shows.

Sources

Each claim above comes from one of these sources. Where Ketju could not verify a number, the memo states that.

The asset and the chain

This memo covers the protocol. A position also holds an asset and settles on a chain. Whichever of the three holds the most power over the position decides who can freeze it. These tables describe control and do not judge quality.

ChainVerdictFreezeWhat it can do
EthereumApproved No freeze key Ethereum has no sequencer, no upgrade key and no operator who can be compelled to act; rule changes require social consensus.
BaseApproved with limits Mixed control Coinbase, one regulated US company, operates the only sequencer, and admin keys can upgrade bridge contracts within about 7 days.
SolanaApproved with limits Governed, no freeze no admin key can seize funds, but stake is concentrating and the Nakamoto coefficient is below 25.
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