With the rise of financial technology, investing in precious stones through mobile apps has become an emerging trend. Precious stones like diamonds, rubies and emeralds have intrinsic value and scarcity, making them a stable store of wealth. Investing in them through an app provides easy access, low barrier to entry, and potential high returns. This new investing channel allows both novice and experienced investors to conveniently build a portfolio of precious gemstones. An investing app can provide real-time pricing, authentication, storage and insurance services to users. Some apps even use blockchain technology to tokenise precious stones, improving transparency and liquidity. Overall, investing in precious stones via a mobile app offers investors an innovative way to diversify their portfolios with an alternative asset class that can hedge against inflation and economic downturns.
Authentication and valuation services ensure quality investment
A key concern when investing in precious stones is authenticating their quality and value. Investing apps address this through partnerships with accredited gemological laboratories to inspect each stone. The labs grade gems based on the 4Cs – color, cut, clarity and carat weight. Advanced imaging technology like fluorescence imaging can reveal treatments and enhancements. Apps may also use computer vision and machine learning for automated grading. Once authenticated and valued, each stone gets a digital certificate of authenticity. Apps then allow users to buy and sell fractions or whole pieces based on real-time valuations. This eliminates issues of overgrading, undisclosed treatments and overpricing.
Improved liquidity via tokenization and fractional ownership
Unlike stocks, precious stones are inherently illiquid assets with high minimum buy-ins. Investing apps provide improved liquidity by tokenizing stones on blockchain and enabling fractional ownership. Each stone gets digitally represented by a token, with ownership rights recorded on blockchain. Investors can then conveniently buy and sell tokens for precious stones from anywhere in small denominations. Fractional ownership also lowers barriers, allowing investment in high value stones like large diamonds. Apps act as custodians, securely storing the physical stones while investors trade the fractional tokens. This structure improves access and liquidity for precious stone investment.
Access to a new asset class for portfolio diversification
Precious stones have stable intrinsic value, making them an effective inflation and recession hedge. Their prices are not strongly correlated to stocks and bonds. Adding them to a portfolio can lower overall risk through diversification. However, high price tags and illiquidity previously restricted access for average investors. Investing apps now offer a low cost channel to conveniently invest in precious stones. With fractional ownership, investors can start with purchases as low as $25-50. Apps also handle authentication, valuation, storage and insurance. This opens up precious stones as an uncorrelated asset class to hedge and diversify investment portfolios for both retail and institutional investors.
Potential for higher returns compared to physical investment
Investing in precious stones via an app provides potential advantages compared to physical possession. Firstly, app-based investment avoids dealer markups, which can range from 100-200%. Secondly, centralized storage in secured vaults reduces insurance and security costs for investors. The app model also enables shared ownership of high value stones most individuals cannot afford wholly. Trading small fractions across global buyers and sellers improves price discovery and unlocks value. Higher liquidity means stones can be sold closer to fair value when needed. These factors combine to offer investors the upside of precious stones investment with lower costs and friction.
In summary, investing in precious stones through a mobile app offers an innovative new option to gain exposure to this alternative asset class. Authentication, valuation and tokenization services lower entry barriers while improving transparency and liquidity compared to physical possession. The ability to conveniently invest small amounts in fractional shares opens up precious stones as an uncorrelated asset class for portfolio diversification, inflation hedging and higher returns.