New York Private Bank & Trust has invested in Gold Bullion International (GBI) to offer its wealth management and private bank clients access to invest in and possess physical previous metals.

New York Private Bank & Trust has invested in Gold Bullion International (GBI) to offer its wealth management and private bank clients access to invest in and possess physical precious metals.

The investment will help GBI develop its internet-based offering, which allows investors to manage their gold as well as use a digital currency, among other investing tools.

“As inflation, geopolitical and sovereign debt risks move to the forefront of investor minds, gold will become an effective hedging component in the portfolios of small and large investors alike,” said New York Private Bank & Trust chairman Howard Milstein.

Citing GBI’s pricing and network of dealers, Milstein said his firm invested in GBI for its “cost-effective and advanced trading platform for investors to purchase and store precious metals.”

The move comes in the same week as the World Gold Council releases its Gold Demand Trends report for the second quarter of 2014.

Gold demand fell by 16 per cent year-on-year in July 2014, from 1,148 tons in the second quarter of 2013 tons to 964 tons. However, it had a favorable turn in central banks, where purchasing grew by 28 per cent in the past 12 months as gold was used to hedge against risk from the US dollar.

Following on from a strong 2013 in gold investments, total investment demand grew 4 per cent to 235 tons. However, bar and coin demand did not match their strengths from the previous year’s 628 tons, and fell by 56 per cent to 275 tons.

GBI holds physical gold in its global vaults, but also provides clients with a digital gold-backed currency which allows investors to make payments in bitcoin, as well as convert physical gold into other currencies.