Colombian gold that arrives with its history.
We buy gold, silver and platinum from registered producers in the Chocó, document every lot from the river to the vault, and deliver it to refiners and buyers abroad.
Half of Colombia’s gold is mined by hand. Very little of it can prove where it came from.
Subsistence miners produce more than half of the country’s gold, panning the same rivers their families have worked for generations. Their metal is real; what it usually lacks is a record. Aurum exists to close that gap: we buy only from producers who are registered, we pay through the banking system, and we hand every buyer the documents that let the metal travel.
The market we work in
- 56.7 t
of gold produced by Colombia in 2024. Fourth in Latin America, after Mexico, Peru and Brazil.
- 53.1%
of 2024 production linked to royalty payments came from subsistence mining: 30.1 tonnes.
- 1,520
mining titles in force that include gold, as of 31 October 2025.
National Mining Agency (ANM), Gold Fact Sheet, November 2025. Preliminary figures.
The rivers where Europe first found platinum.
For most of the eighteenth century, the rivers of the Chocó, on Colombia’s Pacific side, were the only known source of platinum in the world. Spanish miners called it platina, “little silver”, and threw it back while they washed for gold.
Condoto sits in the San Juan basin, at the centre of that history. Today the land along its rivers is held collectively by Afro-Colombian communities under Law 70 of 1993, and administered by their Community Council. Our supply relationship is with the Community Council of Condoto, about 180 km north of our office in Cali.
- Supply partner
- Community Council of Condoto, Chocó
- Stated capacity
- 350 kg a month¹
- Metals
- Gold and platinum from alluvial deposits; silver in the alloy
- Office
- Cali, Valle del Cauca
¹ Capacity stated by the Community Council. It is not a mineral resource or reserve estimate and has not been independently verified.
Three metals, one standard of evidence.
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Photo: James St. John, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons Gold
Our principal metal. Alluvial gold from the San Juan basin, bought as grains and doré.
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Silver
Recovered with gold in the same deposits, and traded on the same documentation.
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Photo: Alchemist-hp, Free Art License 1.3, Wikimedia Commons Platinum
The metal the Chocó gave the world. Traded in smaller volumes, with the same chain of custody.
Specimen photographs, not Aurum inventory.
Follow one lot from the river to the buyer.
Each step produces a document. The buyer receives all of them.
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At the river
Gold is recovered by hand, without mercury. Colombia banned mercury in mining in 2018, under Law 1658 of 2013; we do not buy metal that has been near it.
Producer registered with the municipality
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At the scale
Every purchase is weighed in front of the producer, recorded against their registration and paid by bank transfer. No cash.
Purchase record and certificate of origin
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At our desk
Before a lot moves, we run the five-step due diligence of the OECD Guidance for minerals from high-risk areas, the reference used by refiners in Dubai and London. Unusual operations are reported to UIAF, Colombia’s financial intelligence unit.
Due-diligence file
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At the laboratory
The lot is assayed, sealed and photographed. The seal number follows the metal to the end.
Assay certificate and seal number
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In transit
Brink’s takes custody and carries the lot to export. The export is declared to DIAN, Colombia’s customs authority.
Custody receipt and export declaration
-
At delivery
The refiner or buyer receives the metal with its full file, ready for the due-diligence rules that apply in the UAE.
Complete lot file
The rules we work inside.
Colombian law at the origin, international guidance at the destination.
- ANM
National Mining Agency
Mining authority. Keeps RUCOM, the registry every Colombian mineral trader must be on.
- UIAF
Financial Information and Analysis Unit
Colombia’s financial intelligence unit, which receives reports of suspicious operations.
- OECD
Due Diligence Guidance for minerals
The five-step framework for responsible supply chains from high-risk areas.
- UAE
Responsible gold sourcing rules
The due-diligence requirements applied by refiners and traders in Dubai.
Partners
- BBVA Banking
- Brink’s Transport and custody of valuables
Authorities and frameworks are named to describe the rules that apply to our trade. Naming them does not imply their endorsement.
What can go wrong, and what we do about it.
| Risk | Our control | What you can verify |
|---|---|---|
| Origin | We buy only from registered producers, with a certificate of origin for each purchase. | Producer registrations and certificates, lot by lot. |
| Money laundering | Bank payments only, OECD due diligence and reporting to UIAF. | Due-diligence files and payment records. |
| Mercury and environment | No purchases from operations that use mercury. | Producer declarations and site visits. |
| Custody | Sealed lots, carried by Brink’s from assay to export. | Seal numbers, custody receipts and export declarations. |
| Single source | Today our supply relies on one Community Council. | Supply agreement and plan for new origins. |
| Price | Purchases priced against the international reference on the day. | Pricing formula and settlement terms. |
We are raising USD 10 million to grow the volume we can document.
The capital finances the purchase of metal and the systems that make each lot verifiable. We present no return projections here; the numbers are shared in a data room, under a non-disclosure agreement.
- Amount
- USD 10,000,000
- Use
- Working capital for lot purchases, assay and logistics, compliance systems, and new registered origins
- Structure
- Open to discussion: equity, debt or offtake
- Where
- Meetings in Dubai or by video call
How we work with a partner
Meeting
An introduction in Dubai or by video call.
Confidentiality
A mutual non-disclosure agreement.
Data room
Corporate, commercial and compliance documents.
Due diligence
Your advisers verify what we say.
Terms
A term sheet agreed between both parties.
Meet us in Dubai.
Tell us who you are and how to reach you. We will reply to arrange a meeting in person or by video call.