By Doug Hornig, Casey's Gold & Resource Report
That's the directive that came down from HSBC USA in late November.
It seems that everyone these days wants gold. Real, physical gold coins that they can hold in their hands, or bars that they're assured are resting safely in a well-guarded vault. HSBC's New York vault, for example, buried deep below its 5th Avenue tower, where it has stored people's gold since it inherited the facility from Republic Bank a decade ago.
But no more.
HSBC has served notice to its retail customers - many of whom are simply middle-men and custodial services which store gold with HSBC on behalf of hundreds of their own account holders - that all their gold must be out of its facility by July 2010. Otherwise, folks, prepare for an unwelcome knock at your door. HSBC's letter says that, in the absence of directions to the contrary, clients' metal "will be returned to the address of record... at your expense."
Picture, if you will, what the Wall Street Journal reported: "fleets of armoured cars laden with gold ferrying the precious metal out of New York."
Where to? That's a good question...