To efficiently manage the flow of physical commodities, Shanghai has a highly specialized infrastructure of trading venues and information services. These entities fulfill different, clearly defined roles in the market:

What Is the Shanghai Metals Market (SMM)? 

The SMM is China’s leading independent pricing platform and information source. It is considered a key resource for market analysis, price data, and industry news in the metals and mining sectors. Every day, the SMM publishes spot prices for over 300 price indices and price assessments, including base metals, precious metals, and rare earths. These serve as an important global reference for trade contracts. 

What is the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE)? 

The SHFE is the country’s leading futures exchange. Standardized futures contracts for gold, silver, and base metals are actively traded there to hedge against price fluctuations or to speculate on price changes. It enables price hedging and provides a regulated trading venue with standardized contracts and clearly defined trading rules. 

What is the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE)? 

Operating under the supervision of the People’s Bank of China, it regulates the physical market. The SGE is the world’s largest exchange for physical gold. This is where the official reference price for the Chinese domestic market is set. Due to the enormous volume of physical delivery and its own pricing mechanism, the SGE and the People’s Bank of China are gaining increasing influence over the global gold price. 

A key event is the industry gathering centered around Shanghai Platinum Week (SPW). This event brings together industry leaders, traders, and investors and features a wide range of conferences, seminars, and exhibitions. Market trends, investments, and new technologies are discussed. SPW serves as an important platform for international cooperation and offers insights into the dynamic market and the technological advancements driving the future of this sector. 

Our physical presence on the ground allows us to reliably support these international trade flows. This enables us to efficiently coordinate the key interfaces between mines, refineries, financial institutions, logistics providers, and trading partners. In this way, we provide our international clients with direct and transparent access to one of the world’s most active markets.

The fact that this industry developed in Switzerland is no coincidence. While Europe was marked by uncertainty in the 20th century, the country remained stable and neutral.

Switzerland’s major banks recognized this potential early on. In the post-war decades, institutions like Credit Suisse invested directly in the refineries (such as temporarily in Valcambi) to convert the precious metal directly on-site into standardized, globally tradable bars.

At the same time, the global center of the jewelry industry flourished in directly adjacent Northern Italy. Ticino thus became the ideal geographical and logistical bridge for this value chain. Today, this infrastructure still benefits from state-of-the-art security standards: Helveticor is positioned precisely for this reason with its own strategically important high-security vault directly in Balerna.

Singapore’s enormous relevance within the international framework is underscored by its resident institutions and high-caliber industry events. At the heart of the market is the Singapore Bullion Market Association (SBMA). Since its founding in 1993, it has secured and monitored compliance with the highest quality and compliance standards in the Asian region while actively driving market growth. The SBMA is the driving force that has shaped Singapore into a liquid, transparent, and globally esteemed marketplace.

An annual highlight gathering the global elite of the precious metals industry in the city-state is the Asia Pacific Precious Metals Conference (APPMC). As the leading platform in the APAC-Region (Asia-Pacific) the APPMC serves as a venue for strategic exchange regarding market changes, geopolitical risks, and technological innovations in secure logistics. This world-class ecosystem is complemented by major trade fairs such as the Asia Gold Convention, which specifically network B2B players, mints, and wholesalers to coordinate physical trade flows between Western financial centers and Asia’s gigantic consumer markets.

Helveticor has been firmly anchored in the network of these pioneering events for many years. With our new, dedicated location, we no longer participate merely as a regular conference attendee, but act as a permanent, physically present partner directly on-site.

Co-founded by Annette Fetscherin and Adrian Fuchs, the format relies on the visionary “Bridging Worlds” concept, where professional polo players and elite riders from show jumping and dressage compete together in teams. This connection fascinates us, because we also bridge worlds every day, linking Swiss values with global logistics flows.. This connection fascinates us, because we also bridge worlds every day,linking Swiss values with global logistics flows., Schweizer Werte und globale Logistikströme.

A modern high-security storage facility for precious metals must offer significantly more than traditional safekeeping solutions.

Key requirements include:

• Multi-layered security architectures instead of isolated protection measures
• Clearly defined, documented, and auditable processes
• Full traceability of all inventory movements
• Strict access controls and clearly assigned responsibilities
• Integration of storage, handling, and transportation

Operational excellence is particularly evident in the details. Professional high-security facilities, for example, rely on controlled multi-person procedures such as the six-eyes principle, ensuring that sensitive access is only granted under strictly regulated conditions.

Learn more about our solutions in high-security storage for precious metals.

In times of global uncertainty, a clear shift back towards traditionally secure financial centres can be observed.

Switzerland stands at the forefront – but it is not alone. Asian financial hubs are also gaining strategic importance, particularly:

• Singapur
• Hong Kong

According to international media reports, including Reuters, family offices and UHNWIs are increasingly relocating capital from the Gulf region to stable jurisdictions.

At the same time, demand for multi-jurisdictional wealth structures is rising, enabling targeted diversification of political risk.

The transport of valuables is only as efficient as the vehicle carrying it out. Our fleet ranges from 3.5-tonne vehicles to 26-tonne lorries. In this way, we ensure that every transport volume, every weight and every logistical requirement can be met precisely.

Depending on the order, the appropriate technical equipment is used to secure the goods being transported in the best possible way. This is complemented by modern means of communication that make transport routes transparent and facilitate coordination. This combination of variety and technical equipment makes it possible to provide the right vehicle solution for every job while ensuring efficiency and reliability at the same time.

Our transport operations are specifically planned to reduce CO₂ emissions. By switching our entire vehicle fleet to HVO100 diesel, we have been able to reduce the CO₂ emissions of our delivery vehicles by up to 30%. HVO100 is a sustainable fuel made from renewable raw materials, virtually free of pollutants and yet fully efficient.

Each route is analysed in advance to find the perfect balance between energy efficiency, security and delivery speed. Thanks to intelligent route planning, we avoid empty runs and reduce emissions without compromising the smooth running of your transport operations. In this way, our customers can rest assured that their valuables are not only protected, but also transported in an environmentally responsible manner.

In addition to technology, personnel are crucial for the security of transport operations involving valuables. Our drivers have in-depth experience in handling sensitive transport orders and are specifically prepared for the operational requirements.

The focus is on safe workflows, responsible action and reliable teamwork. In this way, we ensure that transport operations are carried out professionally and that your valuables are reliably escorted at all times.