PAX Gold (PAXG)

What PAX Gold is

PAX Gold (PAXG) is a token where one token equals one fine troy ounce of physical gold held in London Bullion Market Association accredited vaults in London. It is issued by Paxos Trust Company, National Association, a national trust bank regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (source: Paxos, June 2026). Holders can redeem for physical bars, unallocated gold, or US dollars, and Paxos charges no custody or storage fees.

PAXG is not a stablecoin. Its price follows the gold market. What it fixes is the quantity of metal behind each token, not its value in any currency.

How it works

Gold comes first, tokens second. Paxos describes the process directly: when demand rises, it purchases unallocated gold from its supplier, allocates that gold into LBMA-accredited vaults in London as Good Delivery bars, and only then mints PAXG into its own inventory wallets. Tokens transfer to a customer when they buy. In Paxos's words, "the flow is always the same direction: gold enters the vault before tokens enter the market."

Every token corresponds to a specific, auditable bar. Paxos publishes a Gold Allocation Lookup tool that gives bar-serial transparency, so a holder can trace which physical bar sits behind their balance. Reserves are held bankruptcy-remote and segregated from Paxos corporate assets.

Verification runs on two tracks. Gold reserves are attested monthly by KPMG, giving independent confirmation that circulating PAXG is fully backed. Separately, the reserves undergo an annual physical audit by Bureau Veritas. Paxos is careful about what that second check means: it "is limited to physical verification procedures performed on-site and does not constitute an attestation of ownership, valuation, or overall asset backing."

Redemption offers three routes, all through the Paxos site. Holders can take LBMA Good Delivery bullion bars, which requires holding 430 PAXG because that is roughly what a Good Delivery bar contains. They can redeem into unallocated Loco London gold. Or they can redeem for US dollars at the current market price. Paxos notes there is no accredited investor gate, no brokerage account requirement and no large bar minimum for the non-physical routes.

The fee comparison Paxos draws is with gold exchange-traded funds. Those "charge 10 to 40 basis points per year just to hold your position," while PAXG "charges zero for storage." On-chain transfers settle in seconds against T+1 for gold etfs and T+2 for LBMA bars.

Supply and tokenomics

PAXG has no cap and no emission schedule. Supply equals the number of fine troy ounces vaulted and tokenized, expanding when Paxos buys and allocates gold and contracting when holders redeem. There is no staking, no yield and no burn tied to activity, because gold pays no income.

The economics are therefore simple: you pay a spread on entry and exit and a redemption fee if you take delivery, and you pay nothing to hold. That is the structural difference from a gold ETF, which charges an ongoing management fee.

Paxos reports growth in the product rather than a supply schedule.

Multi-chain issuance does not create additional supply. Tokens bridged between chains are the same tokens, and the monthly attestation covers the total in circulation across every chain where PAXG is live.

History

PAXG launched on Ethereum in 2019 as one of the first regulated tokenized gold products, issued under a New York trust charter. Paxos later became a national trust bank supervised by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and PAXG is now issued under that federal charter.

On 25 June 2026, Paxos extended PAXG to Solana, its first step in a multi-chain expansion. To do that it upgraded the Ethereum PAXG contracts to support omnichain functionality across both EVM and non-EVM networks, keeping the existing compliance controls and the supply verification that underpins the monthly KPMG attestations. The upgraded contracts are open source and were independently audited by Zellic.

The Solana deployment uses the Token-2022 program, the same standard Paxos applied to PayPal USD and Global Dollar, with the Permanent Delegate extension enforcing the same regulatory requirements that exist on the Ethereum contract. Existing Ethereum holders can bridge through the Paxos platform or through LayerZero Stargate, with no repurchase and no new attestation required.

Risks and what to watch

Issuer and custody risk sit at the centre. PAXG is a claim on gold held by a regulated custodian, not a self-custodied asset. The protections are the federal trust charter, segregation from corporate assets, bankruptcy-remoteness and monthly attestation. Those are strong compared with unregulated alternatives, but they are legal and procedural safeguards rather than cryptographic ones.

Attestation is periodic. A monthly KPMG report and an annual physical inspection are point-in-time checks, not continuous proof of reserves. Paxos is explicit that the Bureau Veritas audit does not attest to ownership or valuation.

Token-level control exists by design. The Permanent Delegate extension on Solana and the compliance controls in the Ethereum contract mean the issuer can act on balances under legal process. That is what federal supervision requires; it also means PAXG is not censorship-resistant.

Physical redemption is impractical for most holders. Taking a bar requires 430 PAXG and shipping arrangements. Realistically, most people exit by selling, and the market price can trade at a premium or discount to spot gold depending on venue liquidity.

Finally, gold itself moves. A token that pins the quantity of a volatile asset is not a stable store of value in currency terms.

Frequently asked questions

How much gold is behind one PAXG?

One fine troy ounce, stored in LBMA-accredited vaults in London under the legal custody of Paxos Trust Company, National Association.

Can I redeem PAXG for real gold?

Yes. Redemption is available through the Paxos site for LBMA Good Delivery bars, which requires holding 430 PAXG, for unallocated Loco London gold, or for US dollars at the current market price.

Are there storage fees?

No. Paxos charges nothing for storage or custody, which it contrasts with the 10 to 40 basis points per year typical of gold exchange-traded funds.

Which blockchains support PAXG?

Ethereum since 2019 and Solana since 25 June 2026, with Paxos describing Solana as the first step in a broader multi-chain expansion. Ethereum holders can bridge through Paxos or LayerZero Stargate.

Where can I buy PAX Gold?

PAXG is available directly from Paxos and on a range of centralized exchanges. See where to buy PAX Gold for what is listed in your jurisdiction, and Exchanges for how those venues compare.