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ETF Securities Releases Results of Precious Metals Bullion Vault Audit

ETF Securities today released the results of the audit conducted by Inspectorate International Limited, one of the world’s leading independent inspection and testing organizations, to review the bullion stock held on behalf of ETF Securities’ physically-backed precious metal exchange traded products (ETPs).

Separate audits were performed on the bullion held by each individual Trust in vaults in Switzerland and London. Inspectorate International verified the existence of precious metals held for the ETFS Swiss Gold Trust (SGOL) at the vaults of UBS Zurich, a sub-custodian of the Trust’s Custodian J.P. Morgan. Audits were also performed on behalf of the ETFS Silver Trust (SIVR) at the vaults of HSBC Bank in London, and ETFS Platinum Trust (PPLT) and ETFS Palladium Trust (PALL) at J.P. Morgan Chase Bank in London.

“As a part of our ongoing commitment in providing a new standard of transparency1 to the precious metal ETP market and our investors, ETF Securities engages Inspectorate International Limited to audit the bullion held for every one of our Trusts bi-annually,” said Will Rhind2, Managing Director of ETF Securities. “We pride ourselves in providing investors with the assurance that they are purchasing the underlying physical metal when they invest in an ETF Securities precious metal ETPs.”

Following are the results from the inspectorate International Limited report. Audit results are as of close of business on December 31, 2010:

  • ETFS Swiss Gold Trust (SGOL): The account held title to 2,067 London Good Delivery Gold Bars said to be of purity of 99.50% minimum, up to and including 99.99%. As per the weight list records of the Custodian, the bars total 821,617,440 fine troy ounces of gold.
  • ETFS Silver Trust (SIVR): The account held title to 17,143 London Good Delivery Silver Bars said to be of purity of 99.90% minimum, up to and including 99.99%. As per the weight list records of the Custodian, the bars total 16,432,608.900 fine troy ounces of silver.
  • ETFS Platinum Trust (PPLT): The account held title to 2676 London Good Delivery Platinum Bars said to be of purity of 99.95% minimum, up to and including 99.99%. As per the weight list records of the Custodian, the bars total 397,691.804 fine troy ounces of platinum.
  • ETFS Palladium Trust (PALL): The account held title to 9129 London Good Delivery Palladium Bars said to be of purity of 99.95% minimum, up to and including 99.99%. As per the weight list records of the Custodian, the bars total 914,176.885 fine troy ounces of palladium.

Description of Activity: Over the course of the inspection, Inspectorate International performed procedures including but not limited to:

  • Each individual gold, silver, platinum and palladium bar held by the custodian or sub-custodian was agreed to the records of the custodian or sub-custodian as being held in the name of the above mentioned account. All bar numbers, brand and purities of each bar was check against the records of the custodian or sub-custodian. The weight of a representative sample of bars was taken and then checked against the custodian or sub-custodian’s records.
  • Reconciliations were performed between the precious metals inventory records and the records of the custodians. All movements were correctly recorded and the bars held on December 31, 2010 were confirmed by the reconciliation.

Anomalies: There were no anomalies identified in respect of the gold, silver, platinum and palladium held as of December 31, 2010.

For more information please contact the US marketing agent, ETFS Marketing on 212-918-4954 or visit our website: www.etfsecurities.com

The ETFS Gold Trust, ETFS Silver Trust, ETFS Palladium Trust, and ETFS Platinum Trust are not investment companies registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 or commodity pools for purposes of the Commodity Exchange Act. Shares of the Trusts are not subject to the same regulatory requirements as mutual funds. These investments are not suitable for all investors. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.

Risks and Important Considerations

The value of the Shares relates directly to the value of the gold, silver, palladium and platinum held by the Trusts and fluctuations in the price of gold, silver, palladium and platinum could materially adversely affect an investment in the Shares. Several factors may affect the price of gold, silver, palladium and platinum, including: A change in economic conditions, such as a recession, can adversely affect the price of gold, silver, palladium and platinum. Gold, silver, palladium and platinum are used in a wide range of industrial applications, and an economic downturn could have a negative impact on its demand and, consequently, its price and the price of the Shares; Investors' expectations with respect to the rate of inflation; Currency exchange rates; Interest rates; Investment and trading activities of hedge funds and commodity funds; and global or regional political, economic or financial events and situations. Should there be an increase in the level of hedge activity of bullion producing companies, it could cause a decline in world prices, adversely affecting the price of the Shares. Also, should the speculative community take a negative view towards bullion, it could cause a decline in world gold, silver, palladium and platinum prices, negatively impacting the price of the Shares. There is a risk that part or all of the Trust's gold, silver, palladium and platinum could be lost, damaged or stolen. Failure by the Custodian or Sub-Custodian to exercise due care in the safekeeping of the precious metal held by the Trusts could result in a loss to the Trusts. Investments in the trusts do not constitute a direct investment in the underlying metals.

The Trusts are new and have limited operating history. Commodities generally are volatile and are not suitable for all investors. Trusts focusing on a single commodity generally experience greater volatility. Since there is no limit on the amount of platinum and palladium that the Trust may acquire, the Trust, as it grows, may have an impact on the supply and demand of platinum and palladium. Please refer to the prospectus for complete information regarding all risks associated with the Trusts.

Shares in the Trusts are not FDIC insured, may lose value and have no bank guarantee.

This material must be accompanied or preceded by a prospectus. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing. Click here to review the prospectus.

ALPS Distributors, Inc. is the marketing agent for ETFS Gold Trust, ETFS Silver Trust, ETFS Platinum Trust, and ETFS Palladium Trust. ETF Securities Ltd. or its affiliates are not affiliated with ALPS Distributors, Inc. Certain marketing services may be provided for ETFS Gold Trust, ETFS Silver Trust, ETFS Platinum Trust and ETFS Palladium Trust by ETFS Marketing LLC.

Although Shares of the Trust may be bought and sold on the exchange through any brokerage account, they are not individually redeemable directly from the Trust. Investors may acquire Shares and tender them for redemption through the Trust in Basket aggregation only. Please see the prospectus for more details.

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” with respect to results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance and business. Statements preceded by, followed by or that include words such as “may”, “will”, “should”, “expect”, “plan”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “predict”, “potential”, or similar expressions are intended to identify some of the forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and are included, along with the statement, for purposes of complying with the safe harbor provisions of that Act. All statements (other than statements of historical fact) included in this press release that address activities, events or developments that will or may occurring the future, including such matters as changes in commodity prices and market conditions (for Gold, Silver, Platinum and Palladium and the Shares), the Trusts operations, the Sponsors plans and references to the Trusts future success and other similar matters are forward looking statements. These statements are only predictions. Actual events or results may differ materially.

1 ETFs are transparent as current trade and quote information is made readily available to the public.
2 William Rhind is a registered representative of ALPS Distributors, Inc.

ETF000380 05/24/2012

Contacts:

Press:
Intermarket Communications
Stephanie DiIorio, 212-754-5181
sdiiorio@intermarket.com
or
ETF Securities
Helen Burden, +44 20 7448 4336
helen.burden@etfsecurities.com
or
All Other US Inquiries:
ETFS Marketing LLC
48 Wall Street, 11th Floor
New York, NY 10005
212-918-4954
info@etfsecurities.com

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