From Zero Hedge:
83 Tons Of Fake Gold Bars: Gold Market Rocked By Massive China Counterfeiting Scandal
Over the years, we have periodically - reported of the occasional gold bar discovered as counterfeit in Manhattan's Diamond District which instead of containing the yellow precious metal would be filled with gold-plated tungsten or in some cases copper. The news would spark a brief wave of outrage, prompting physical gold holders to run ultrasound spot checks of their inventory, at which point interest would wane and why not: buyer, after all, beware in gold as in every other market, and if someone is spending thousands to buy fake gold, well that's Darwinism in action.
Yet one market which seemed stubbornly immune to any counterfeiting was that of physical gold in China, which was odd considering that over the past decade China had emerged as the world's biggest counterfeiter of various, mostly industrial metals used to secure bank loans, better known as "ghost collateral", and which adding insult to injury, would frequently be rehypothecated meaning often several banks would have claims to the same (fake) asset.
All that is about to change with the discovery of what may be one of the biggest gold counterfeiting scandal in recent history. And yes, not only does it involve China, but it emerges from a city that has become synonymous for all that is scandalous about China: Wuhan itself.
With that preamble in mind, we introduce readers to Wuhan Kingold Jewelry Inc., a company which as the name implies was founded and operates out of Wuhan, and which describes itself on its website as "A Company with a Golden future."
Heh - much much more at the story. This reaches into the top of the Chinese government. What with the rains, the possible troubles with the Three Gorges Dam and the Wuhan flu, this is not a good year for China.
I wrote about this back in 2012 here: Gold counterfeiting -- ten bars found in New York City
I also linked to this company: ChinaTungsten Online - still online and still in business.
You can buy your own "gold" bar. From the website:
How to Make Tungsten Gold plated Bar?
Start with a tungsten alloy about 1/8-inch smaller in each dimension than the tungsten alloy gold bar you want, then cast a 1/16-inch layer of real pure gold all around it. This product would feel right in the hand, and tungsten alloy gold bar would have a dead ring when knocked as gold should. tungsten Gold plated bar would test right chemically, weigh exactly the right amount, and also pass an x-ray fluorescence scan, the 1/16" layer of pure gold being enough to stop the x-rays from reaching any tungsten.
Tungsten alloy gold bar and tungsten gold plated bar as a gold substitution could be regarded as the special present for some fields. If you are a broker in stock, manager in a big bank or insurance company, you can use Chinatungsten tungsten alloy gold plated bar engraved with your company's name as souvenirs to your VIP customers. It is a very decent present without costing too much, and also could attract more customers for your business.
And from their ABOUT US page, we see that they have been in business since 1997 - 23 years.
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