The London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) is the association which operates the London Bullion Market – a precious metals exchange in London, United Kingdom. Founded by the Bank of England in 1987, the exchange plays a decisive role in determining global gold and silver prices, and in setting standards of purity for gold and silver.
In addition to administrating the London Bullion Market, the primary function of the LBMA is to set good delivery standards for gold and silver. Bullion refiners which consistently meet LBMA standards are included in the LBMA Good Delivery List. This list is widely regarded as the benchmark for gold and silver production standards.
Trades are performed over the counter directly between members of the exchange. The exchange facilitates trading spot trading, forward trading and leases. An electronic clearing system is used to settle transactions. Both allocated and unallocated precious metal accounts are offered. The Bank of England acts as custodian bank, providing secure storage facilities for LBMA members.
Market makers include UBS, Societe General, ICBC Standard Bank, HSBC, JP Morgan Chase Bank, Goldman Sachs International, Citibank, Bank of Nova Scotia SociaMocatta, BNP Paribas, Merril Lynch International, Morgan Stanley & Co International, Standard Chartered Bank and Toronto-Dominion Bank.
Gold and silver trades are settled on a T+2 settlement cycle.
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