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Deferred Consideration
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2021
Text Block [Abstract]  
Deferred Consideration
9. Deferred Consideration
Deferred consideration represents an obligation the Company assumed in connection with its acquisition of the European exchange-traded commodity, currency and
leveraged-and-inverse
business of ETFS Capital Limited (“ETFS Capital”) which occurred on April 11, 2018 (“ETFS Acquisition”). The obligation is for fixed payments to ETFS Capital of physical gold bullion equating to 9,500 ounces of gold per year through March 31, 2058 and then subsequently reduced to 6,333 ounces of gold continuing into perpetuity (“Contractual Gold Payments”).
The Contractual Gold Payments are paid from advisory fee income generated by any Company-sponsored financial product backed by physical gold and are subject to adjustment and reduction for declines in advisory fee income generated by such products, with any reduction remaining due and payable until paid in full. ETFS Capital’s recourse is limited to such advisory fee income and it has no recourse back to the Company for any unpaid amounts that exceed advisory fees earned. ETFS Capital ultimately has the right to claw back Gold Bullion Securities Ltd. (a physically backed gold ETP issuer) if the Company fails to remit any amounts due.
The Company determined the present value of the deferred consideration of $227,146 and $230,137 at March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 using the following assumptions:
 
    
March 31,

2021
   
December 31,

2020
 
Forward-looking gold price (low) – per ounce
   $ 1,717     $ 1,903  
Forward-looking gold price (high) – per ounce
   $ 3,201     $ 2,662  
Forward-looking gold price (weighted average) – per ounce
   $ 2,136     $ 2,117  
Discount rate
     9.0
%
 
      9.0
%
 
 
Perpetual growth rate
     1.7
%
 
      0.9
%
 
 
The forward-looking gold prices at March 31, 2021 were extrapolated from the last observable CMX exchange price (beyond 2026) and the weighted-average price per ounce was derived from the relative present values of the annual payment obligations. The perpetual growth rate was determined based upon the increase in observable forward-looking gold prices through 2026. This obligation is classified as Level 3 as the discount rate and extrapolated forward-looking gold prices are significant unobservable inputs. An increase in spot gold prices, forward-looking gold prices and the perpetual growth rate would result in an increase in deferred consideration, whereas an increase in the discount rate would reduce the fair value.
Current amounts payable were $15,637 and $17,374 and long-term amounts payable were $211,509 and $212,763, respectively, at March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively.
During the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020, the Company recognized the following in respect of deferred consideration:
 
    
Three Months Ended

March 31,
 
    
2021
    
2020
 
Contractual Gold Payments
   $ 4,270      $ 3,760  
Contractual Gold Payments – gold ounces paid
     2,375        2,375  
Gain/(loss) on revaluation of deferred consideration – gold payments(1)
   $ 2,832      $ (2,208
 
(1)
Gains on revaluation of deferred consideration – gold payments result from a decrease in spot gold prices, a decrease in the forward-looking price of gold, a decrease in the perpetual growth rate and an increase in the discount rate used to compute the present value of the annual payment obligations. Losses on revaluation of deferred consideration – gold payments result from an increase in spot gold prices, an increase in the forward-looking price of gold, an increase in the perpetual growth rate and a decrease in the discount rate used to compute the annual payment obligations.