Every year my boys get the gift of money at Christmas from relatives, from the grand-parents, aunts and uncles. In the past this money has gone into their instant access (very small interest paying) cash savings accounts and they have simply spent the money on things that they need. This year I am considering something different, something new that will hopefully provide some money for the future. For a future time in life when they want to use a big chunk of money.
My children are not the only ones who get money, a recent survey conducted by The Royal Mint reveals that 55% of adults are looking to put money into savings for their children rather than buying more stuff. A gift that can be enjoyed in the early days of adult life when money is very much needed.
The Royal Mint launches Little Treasures
The Royal Mint, a very well-known and trusted institution, who have made our coins in the UK dating back 1,100 years, have just launched Little Treasures. You can now invest in gold for your children with The Royal Mint.

In challenging economic times gold often performs well as an investment, the value of gold has risen from £674 per ounce in 2010 to a high of £1,574 in 2020 an increase of 133.5%! And now you have a chance to invest your money in gold for the children. This is the first of its kind in the UK and makes for an interesting alternative to Junior ISA’s. And maybe something that the children can get excited about to have been given some gold for Christmas! DJ (my eldest son), I have given you a tiny bit of this gold bar for Christmas!
How does Little Treasures work?
- Eligible adults can set up an account here.
- Investors purchase fractional gold to the nearest 0.001 ounce, from £25.
- All the physical gold is safely secured at The Royal Mint, one of the safest vaults in the world. Savings can be reviewed via their online account
- Payments can be made via regular standing orders, or as one-off transactions from £25.
- The digital gold can be converted to cash or physical bullion to gift at any time to your ‘Little Treasure’ at any time
- There are fees associated with the product. There is a 0.5% (+VAT) annual management charge. Plus, a 0.33% buying fee and a 1% selling fee. These fees are taken direct from the value of the holding.
How Much Could you have Made if you had invested in Gold?
This information is based on past data and markets and is no guarantee for future returns, but it does provide an interesting comparison of the growth of gold over time compared to cash and cash ISA’s.
Data from The Royal Mint reveals that adults who invested £25 a month in gold over 18 years between 2002 and 2020, would have accumulated £13,393 in gold savings. When compared to putting the same amount into a 2% cash ISA it would have accumulated £6,493, while simply setting it aside with no interest would leave savers with £5,400. (Based on interest calculated on ISA on annual basis, the gold growth is exclusive of fees).
What Could the Children Use this money for?
This is how I would explain the savings to my children to enable them to get their head around a longer-term savings product. This money does need to go away for at least 5 years. This is a longer-term savings product similar to a Junior ISA’s.
University Life
I would love for my children to go to university if it’s the right thing for them to do. But let’s not ignore the fact that it will cost a lot of money. There are tuition fees and living expenses to cover. Student loans do not cover everything that a student needs, as in food, books, some form of a social life. Speaking with various parent friend whose children are at university, they provide around £250 per month to cover living expenses. It would be prudent to assume £3k per year or £9k required for a three-year university degree. That £25 per month would go a long way towards covering these costs.

A First Car
It would be amazing to have a nest egg sat there for your child to buy their first car outright and afford to pay for the car insurance. Maybe £3k for the first car plus the £1500 to £2500 for annual car insurance bill, praying that after a year the no claims bonus will bring that cost down!

A deposit on a flat or house
Or maybe the nest egg could be saved as a contribution towards your child’s first house. As time goes on it becomes more and more difficult for younger people to afford to buy a house. This could be an invaluable way to help them fund that deposit.

This is a collaborative post with The Royal Mint and does not constitute investment advice. My view and my view only. An investment in gold is like any other investment. There is risk involved and the value can go down as well as up.
One Response
Hi Lynn, I’ve opted for this idea – for my daughter.
I have added money to the wallet and wonder what happens next…do they automatically transfer it to little treasures account?