How Alpine Gold’s Zero-Spread Program Works (2025)

Retirement investors across America face unprecedented economic challenges. Inflation eats away at savings while traditional investments struggle to maintain purchasing power. Alpine Gold Exchange and the United Precious Metals Association (UPMA) offer a solution through their innovative Zero-Spread Program.

The program combines physical precious metals ownership with unusual liquidity features. It allows members to buy and sell gold and silver without the typical dealer markups that reduce returns [1]. This increases profits for investors with Alpine's unique 0% buy/sell option, which is unusual in the precious metals industry.

The Economic Reality Facing Retirement Investors

The dollar's purchasing power continues its long-term decline. Since 1950, inflation has dramatically reduced what your money buys. During just the three years around COVID, sugar prices jumped 44%, electricity rates climbed, and eggs soared to $5-9 per dozen in many regions.

Gold, meanwhile, has maintained and increased its purchasing power. An ounce bought at $60 decades ago now commands around $2,000. This represents not just nominal growth but real preservation of buying power [2].

Global factors further threaten traditional investments. De-dollarization efforts by BRICS nations, increasing tariffs, mounting national debt, and ongoing conflicts create economic headwinds. These factors drive more Americans toward hard assets with historical stability.

What Makes Alpine Gold's No Seller Fee Approach Different

Most precious metals dealers operate on a wide spread model. They buy metals at wholesale prices and sell at retail prices. When customers sell back their metals, dealers pay significantly less than retail value.

Industry practice typically involves dealers purchasing gold and silver from clients for much less than they sell them for. A gold coin costing $2,000 might only fetch $1,850 when sold back to the same dealer - creating an immediate $150 loss even if prices haven't moved [3].

Alpine Gold's 0% Buy/Sell option eliminates this problem. UPMA members can sell back up to $10,000 of their vaulted precious metals monthly without any spread fees. Members receive the same price whether buying or selling.

Unlike traditional precious metals dealers, which often impose spreads of 5–15% between buy and sell prices, layering in hidden precious metals dealer markups, Alpine Gold removes this cost barrier entirely.

A market survey of leading precious metals companies shows that few, if any, offer this zero-spread structure. While some competitors advertise "competitive spreads," they still maintain significant profit margins on buy-back transactions.

This feature alone can save investors thousands of dollars over time. The company estimates that the savings could cover eight years of vaulting fees on a $50,000 gold account.

This provides a highly efficient gold liquidity strategy, enabling account holders to access value without incurring traditional dealer losses.

How Alpine Gold Exchange and UPMA Structure the Zero-Spread Trading Program

The program operates through two interconnected entities:

Alpine Gold Exchange serves as the e-commerce platform. It provides a marketplace for purchasing precious metals including legal tender U.S. minted gold and silver coins and the increasingly popular Goldbacks.

United Precious Metals Association (UPMA) functions as a non-profit organization providing vaulting services for members who want to invest and hold physical metals.

Together, these organizations implement a sound money policy while offering members exceptional benefits unavailable elsewhere in the precious metals industry.

Core Benefits of the Spread-Free System

No Seller Fees Up to $10,000 Monthly

Most precious metals investors face significant fees when liquidating positions. Alpine Gold's program allows members to convert up to $10,000 of holdings to cash monthly without seller's fees.

Keating describes this unique advantage: "Generally, when somebody buys precious metal, they pay for a buyer's fee, and then when they go to sell it, they pay a seller's fee. They buy it at retail, and they sell it at wholesale. And they wonder why in the world they ever got out of precious metals? Because it just cost them. You know, 10% going in and 15% going out. At UPMA, you can liquidate up to $10,000 out of your account, turn it back into Fiat US currency, and there's no seller's fee. So you pay retail for the gold, and you sell at retail. And no one offers this benefit." [4]

This means members pay retail for gold and sell at retail - not wholesale. No other company offers this benefit, which creates remarkable liquidity for typically illiquid assets.

To illustrate the real-world impact:

Digital Member-to-Member Transfers

UPMA membership includes access to a digital transfer portal. Members can spend gold between accounts using a simple mobile app. If a merchant has a UPMA account, customers can pay in fractional gold or Goldbacks directly.

This system creates a practical digital gold and silver currency platform outside traditional banking networks. Transfers occur instantly without conversion to fiat currency first.

Gold and Silver Leasing Program

Perhaps the most revolutionary feature is the gold and silver leasing program. Members can pledge their precious metals into a lease and earn 2-3.5% annually, paid monthly in the same metal being leased.

Traditional gold leasing programs exist worldwide but typically require minimum investments of 1,000 ounces (approximately $3 million). Alpine Gold's program starts at just $500, opening this market to everyday investors.

The leasing transforms gold and silver from stagnant holdings into income-producing assets. Leased metals never leave the vault - companies simply use the assets on their balance sheets while paying "rent" to the owner.

Members concerned about liquidity can lease Goldbacks with only 60 days' notice required to terminate without penalty. Standard gold leases run 12 months.

Goldbacks: Practical Gold Currency

Alpine Gold serves as a key distributor for Goldbacks - actual 24-karat gold currency printed on polymer sheets. Available in multiple denominations starting at 1/1000th of an ounce, Goldbacks function as legal tender in several states.

Each Goldback features state-specific artwork and contains real gold in specified amounts. Six states currently have Goldbacks with three more launching this year. A merchant network of nearly 2,000 businesses nationwide accepts them as payment.

The currency allows everyday gold transactions impossible with traditional bullion. While a one-ounce gold coin at $2,800 can't be divided for small purchases, Goldbacks enable practical use of gold in daily commerce.

How UPMA & Alpine Gold Secure Your Vaulted Metals

All metals in the UPMA vaults go through three independent audits annually. Every dollar deposited equals physical metal in the vault - no fractional reserves or paper promises.

Vaults carry insurance from Lloyd's of London. The company maintains five separate vaulting locations across the United States, with physical branches in New Hampshire, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and a new facility opening in Florida.

Cost Structure and Fees

UPMA keeps fee structures transparent and competitive:

• Membership: Free
• IRA administration: $195 annually (approximately $100 less than industry standards)
• Precious metals vaulting: Approximately 0.25% annually (half the industry standard of 0.5%)
• Vaulting fees: Waived completely for metals in the leasing program

These low fees maximize growth potential while providing professional security and management of assets.

How to Participate in the Zero-Spread Program

Creating an account takes minutes through a simple online application. Members select their account type and complete basic personal information for compliance purposes.

Funding options include:

• Bank transfers
• Credit card transactions
• Existing metals transfers (subject to a 10-12% verification fee)

After funding, members can use the trading interface to purchase metals at competitive market rates. Customer support helps navigate options and optimize holdings based on individual goals.

The program offers IRA and 401(k) integration for tax-advantaged precious metals investing. This allows retirement investors to diversify portfolios while maintaining tax benefits.

Why Alpine Gold Exchange Offers the Strongest Exit Strategy in Gold IRA Liquidation

Alpine Gold emphasizes something most precious metals dealers ignore: the exit strategy. The zero-spread program provides a clear, cost-effective way to liquidate holdings when needed.

Most investors spend considerable time analyzing entry points but neglect planning their exit. With traditional dealers, liquidity comes at a cost - standard buy-sell spreads can eat away at returns, forcing investors to hold metals longer than intended or accept losses upon sale.

Alpine Gold changes this equation. The ability to liquidate up to $10,000 monthly at market rates provides a real-time exit strategy, ensuring investors can move between gold and cash positions without hidden penalties.

Keating highlights this overlooked aspect: "Especially in my own portfolio, and especially working with financial clients, I always stressed exit strategy, because no one else talks about exit strategy. Hey, you're going to buy gold. How are you going to get out of it? Hey, you're going to buy this stock. What's your exit strategy? Buy this real estate. What's your exit strategy? So if you don't have a strategy, you're going to get stuck, you're going to get burnt, and you're going to hold too long." [5]

This matters particularly for IRA investors facing Required Minimum Distributions. When RMDs begin, investors can transfer up to $10,000 monthly from their precious metals IRA to their non-IRA account without paying typical seller's fees.

This flexibility saves significant money during distribution phases and provides peace of mind throughout the investment lifecycle.

Full breakdown: Is Alpine Gold Exchange the best leasing platform this year?

The Future of Sound Money

The Alpine Gold and UPMA approach extends beyond individual benefits. The organizations actively work with state legislatures to implement sound money policies nationwide.

Currently, 28 states recognize gold and silver as legal tender. The companies continue advocating for expansion while developing international partnerships to bring sound money principles to a global audience.

As economic uncertainty drives increased demand for alternative stores of value, transparent and efficient investment models like the zero-spread program may become increasingly important.

As a sound money alternative platform, Alpine Gold Exchange provides investors with transparency, liquidity, and control not seen in legacy institutions.

While other financial institutions maintain traditional pricing structures, investor demand for cost-effective precious metals transactions continues to grow.

For retirement investors concerned about economic stability, Alpine Gold's Zero-Spread Program offers a practical approach to wealth preservation with unprecedented flexibility and benefits unavailable anywhere else in the precious metals market.

References:

[1] Elwell, C. K. (2023). Inflation: Causes, Costs, and Current Status. Congressional Research Service.

[2] World Gold Council. (2024). Gold as a Strategic Asset. Investment Research.

[3] Alpine Gold Exchange. (2025). Exchange with 0% Buy/Sell Spread. https://alpinegold.com/services/exchange-with-0-buy-sell-spread/

‍[4] United Precious Metals Association. (2025). 0% Buy/Sell Spread. https://upma.org/0-buysell-spread

‍[5] Financial Planning Association. (2024). Exit Strategies for Alternative Investments. Journal of Financial Planning.