What is Gold Fixing and how exactly did it come about?

The original five members of the London Gold Fixing were: N M Rothschild & Sons, Mocatta & Goldsmid; Pixley & Abell, Samuel Montagu & Co and Sharps & Wikins. Now the gold price is fixated twice a day, at 10:30AM and 3PM, via telephone conference. First, the chairman has to offer an opening price, and only after all other 4 members agree upon that price (after they all received orders from their customers declaring themselves as buyers), and only when the buy amount and the sell amount are within 50 bars of each other (creating a balance), can the Chairman fix the gold value at a certain price.

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Gold Fixing is the procedure by which gold is priced on the London exchange market. Although it is not the formal duty of the Gold Fixing group, it actually provides a recognized rate to be used as a pricing reference for the gold product market throughout most parts of the world. Gold Fixing first took place at a meeting in 1919 between 5 prominent gold bullion traders in order to fixate the price of gold. They would meet at the NM Rothschild & Sons offices in St. Swithin's Lane twice a day to decide upon the day's gold price. However, most recently in 2004 the responsibilities of Gold Fixing were handed over to Barclays Bank and the chairmanship of their Gold Fixing meetings rotates annually.

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