The Challenges of Gold owners, Recently, I was involved in negotiations for 500kg of gold FOB in Kenya. A trusted Gold Owner had connected with a buyer's team that operated through AfriSwiss and Stedmark. Unfortunately, their first transaction fell through because we hadn't finalized all the procedures during preliminary meetings, a common mistake that often leads Gold Owners to be misbranded as scammers when they seek commitments. Determined to avoid previous pitfalls, I delved into the details before our initial Google Meet, aiming for confirmation rather than negotiations during the call. To my dismay, the person I thought was the buyer turned out to be merely a mandate. This misunderstanding led to a shift in our agreement from 500kg FOB to a less favorable 50kg FOB and 450kg CIF arrangement. Working with CIF involves greater due diligence for Gold Owners, as there have been scams where brokers lure them to the UAE only to attempt to abscond with the gold—a dangerous situation. After presenting a counteroffer for the new terms and requesting the buying entity's full name, I faced significant pushback from the facilitators who insisted on using an incomplete name that lacked proper business designation. Through this experience, I realized that I've encountered more fraudulent and opaque individuals on the buyers' side than on the Gold Owners' side. It’s crucial that we, as facilitators and mandates, improve transparency and communication in the market to protect Gold Owners and foster genuine transactions, rather than rushing into deals for commission. Please do contact me if you are genuine, and get gold the old fashioned way. Straightforward! Kind regards Abû Bakr *#buybackafrica*