Compliance Spine
Verifiable origin or no transaction.
Responsible sourcing is the perimeter inside which Aurelian Mercantile operates. It is not a policy bolted onto a trading book. It is the trading book.
Standards we follow
The firm aligns with the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict Affected and High Risk Areas as its baseline standard. Where applicable to the metal involved, the firm aligns with the LBMA Responsible Gold Guidance for refiners and counterparties in our flow. Where local practice or regulation is lighter, the firm operates to the higher standard, not the lower one.
The six gating items
For every transaction, six items must be in place before capital moves. None of them are negotiable.
Licensed and bankable seller
Verified export licence, verified company standing, verified beneficial ownership, sanctions and politically exposed person screening cleared.
Verifiable mine origin
Declared mine origin that survives independent checking. Export origin alone is not sufficient. If the origin cannot be verified, the transaction does not happen.
Independent assay
A recognised independent inspector certifies the weight and purity of the metal before payment to the seller.
Confirmed refinery intake and contracted offtake
An approved refinery confirms intake and a buyer contracts the offtake before the transaction proceeds. Settlement is structured around the destination.
Banked settlement
Funds move through regulated banking channels and documentary instruments only. No cash. No informal payment routes.
Insurance and reserve
Cargo and political risk insurance covers the transit window. A reserve sits behind every transaction so that a single failed shipment is a loss rather than an extinction event.
What this means in practice
Responsible sourcing is the reason a transaction takes longer to complete at Aurelian Mercantile than at a less disciplined counterpart. We accept that cost openly. The flows that we cannot verify are flows we do not finance. The opportunities we decline are the opportunities that protect the firm and its counterparties from the categories of risk that have defined the worst outcomes in this market historically.
Counterparties, banks and regulators are welcome to test the perimeter. The firm will provide documentation, audit access and counterparty references on appropriate terms to any institution conducting bona fide due diligence.