It’s the ultimate hole-in-the-wall – a money machine that dispenses pure gold. Never mind packets of crisps and sweets, shoppers at a Westfield’s shopping centre in Shepherd’s Bush, west London, will now be able to use a very different type of vending machine – to pick up a gold bar.
In the same way that money is withdrawn from a hole in the wall, Britain’s first gold vending machine ‘Gold to Go’ means every day shoppers can literally pick up a solid investment as they wander around the shops. It follows the launch of the first ever cash-for-gold machine which was switched on last year beneath the gold-coated ceilings of Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Palace hotel.
The machines were first tested in Germany in 2009, but German manufactures Ex Oriente Lux chose Abu Dhabi for the official launch of the invention because of the region’s high demand for gold. They came up with the idea to capitalise on gold’s reputation as a safe investment, according to the Daily Telegraph.
A computer inside the machine updates the prices every 10 minutes to reflect fluctuations in the world market. Shoppers can pick up a 1g coin for roughly £40 or a 250g bar for £10,250. In 2001, the price of gold was £6 a gram to £33 a gram today and is expected to keep rising steadily.
The owners expect lots of people to use the gold as presents of people and can pick up a 2.5g bar with London’s skyline engraved on it, the newspaper reported. Thieves however, should think twice about breaking into the machine, which is made of reinforced steel and is fully alarmed, but does not need security guards.