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Account Opening and Disclosure Agreement (the “Agreement”)

Last Updated: January 26, 2026

The following terms govern your Client Account with Hard Assets Alliance, LLC d/b/a GBI Direct (“GBI Direct”) including the offering of Precious Metals Products and Services through and any cash balances and Precious Metals held in your Account. 

The Investment 

Hard Assets Alliance, LLC d/b/a GBI Direct, a New York limited liability company, has been formed to provide its Clients with a means to directly buy, store and sell Precious Metals. 

Principal Offices 

485 Lexington Avenue Suite 304 

New York, NY 10017 

Phone: (877) 727-7387 

Website: https://gbidirect.com 

Email: support@gbidirect.com 

Transaction Fees 

The price of any Precious Metal purchase or sale order will include a transaction fee (“Transaction Fee”), which will be included in the price shown to the Client on the trading pages and trade confirmations. 

The Transaction Fee will be based on the monetary value of the order and will be used by GBI Direct to cover, among other things, trading, transportation (including costs of insuring Precious Metals during transport) and other administrative costs. 

Secured Storage and Service Fee 

Clients will be charged a storage fee (the “Storage Fee”) on a quarterly basis, in arrears. The Storage Fee will begin to accrue on the settlement date of purchases and will stop accruing on the settlement date minus one for sales. 

The amount of the Storage Fee will be calculated by using the aggregate of the daily accrual of the Client’s settled holdings. Asset Base Fee = (Daily Valuation * BPS)/Number of days in the year. The value of a Client’s Precious Metal holdings for each day will equal such Client’s holdings at the closing of business at the average closing bid price for such day or the last day that such price was available for weekends and business holidays. 

The Storage Fee will be used to cover GBI Direct’s overhead expenses, including, without limitation, all expenses incurred in connection with the storage, security, insurance and verification of Precious Metals (including fees and expenses paid to the Vaulting Partners and the Auditors (as defined below), expenses associated with preparing reports and valuations, legal expenses, and other operating expenses of GBI Direct). 

Other Fees 

Any additional fees such as delivery, funding, etc., will be displayed when executing the appropriate action, and will allow the Client to confirm before submitting the request. 

Redemptions 

GBI Direct reserves the right, without prior notice of any kind to the Client, to redeem any Precious Metals in a Client’s account in order to satisfy any obligations of a Client to GBI Direct for which Client is in arrears for more than thirty (30) days (the “Obligations”), including without limitation Storage Fees and any other fees and expenses relating to a Client’s account. If GBI Direct redeems any of a Client’s Precious Metals for any reason, it will charge the Client a fee of 2.5% of the dollar amount of the Precious Metals redeemed, in addition to the amount required to pay in full all of the Client’s outstanding Obligations. 

Business Day 

A valid business day is one in which the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is open for business. Standard trading hours are between 9:00am and 5:15pm EST. Any trading outside of these hours would be considered extended trading hours. 

Trading Day 

Standard trading hours are between 9:00am and 5:15pm EST. Any trading outside of these hours would be considered extended trading hours. 

Application 

GBI Direct Services may be offered through its primary website hardassetsalliance.com, through other websites, officially sponsored client applications, documented application programming interfaces, and other methods. These offerings collectively shall be referred to as the Application, and your Account may be accessible through one or more of these means. This Agreement covers the appropriate use of your Account and the rules that govern that use when accessed through any part of the Application, but not by means other than officially supported by. 

Precious Metals Products and Services Offering 

GBI Direct will process the purchase and sale of sell coins and bars on behalf of its Clients. Purchase orders may be placed in either dollars or for a specific quantity. In the event of a dollar order placement, GBI Direct effects the purchase of the quantity of the Product type ordered without exceeding the total dollar amount of the order. All transactions are executed by Gold Bullion International, LLC (“GBI”). 

All Products offered by GBI Direct are displayed in its Application. All Products and Service offerings are subject to availability will use commercially reasonable efforts to accurately reflect the availability of all Products at the time a Client places an order to purchase or commitment to invest in such Product. However, for reasons out of control this information may not always be accurate, and all Client indications of intent to purchase are subject to cancellation for any reason until such time that a purchase or investment is confirmed to be complete will not be held responsible for any potential gains or losses that could have been incurred as a result of the failure to complete an order, regardless of the reason. 

Certain Products may not be available for purchase or sale during extended trading hours. Please refer to the Product details in the Application for further information. 

Variable Weight Products 

The actual weight of variable weight bars varies from bar to bar as much as +/- 50 oz. GBI Direct will use best efforts to procure bars close to the specified fine weight dependent on dealer supply. Clients will be charged on the actual fine weight of the bar used to fill a purchase order. 

Purchase/Sale Price 

When a Client submits a purchase or sale order, GBI Direct will use commercially reasonable efforts to execute the order as soon as reasonably practicable after receiving it. For each purchase or sale order, GBI Direct will use commercially reasonable efforts to obtain best execution pricing for that order. Orders involving multiple Products may be executed with more than one Dealer (as defined below), and each Product may be purchased or sold at a different price and different Products may be physically delivered at different times. 

Order Placement 

All orders must be placed through the Application or over the phone with a GBI Direct/GBI representative. 

Settlement 

All purchases placed with GBI Direct require the Client to first deposit sufficient funds on account to cover the estimated cost of the order, including Transaction Fees, plus an execution buffer to guard against volatility in the market, each of which will be disclosed prior to placement of the order. These funds will be held in a GBI Direct custodial account at a U.S. bank of its choice (currently Bank of America, but subject to change without notice). Clients have the option of maintaining this cash balance at GBI Direct for future purchases or withdrawal. 

Upon the confirmation of a purchase order by the Client, will immediately reserve the appropriate amount of these funds for the settlement of the order; however, funds may remain in the account until settlement at a later time (outlined below). 

In the case of sales, GBI Direct will deposit the proceeds on the Client’s cash balance or send a check or wire for net proceeds to the Client, as per their instructions. 

In certain circumstances, physical delivery to GBI Direct’s contracted vaults may be delayed due to the transportation requirements of moving Precious Metals; however the title is always transferred on settlement date of the order. Pursuant to the agreement between each Dealer and GBI Direct, the Dealers will bear any costs, expenses or liabilities (including replacement costs) if any Precious Metal purchase or sale order is either delayed or not physically delivered after order settlement. 

GBI Direct will accept Client orders 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. However, because the firm only conducts trading 24 hours a day 5 days a week on days that the NYSE is open for business: i) final Client execution prices for orders placed on weekends or market holidays may vary from the price quoted within the bounds of the execution buffer, if any, quoted at the time of order confirmation; and ii) orders may be subject to suspension or cancellation as detailed below. 

 

Trade Date* 

 

Settlement Day 

 

From EST 

To EST 

 

Day 1 

Sun 5:15:00 pm 

Mon 5:14:59 pm 

Wednesday 

Day 2 

Mon 5:15:00 pm 

Tue 5:14:59 pm 

Thursday 

Day 3 

Tue 5:15:00 pm 

Wed 5:14:59 pm 

Friday 

Day 4 

Wed 5:15:00 pm 

Thurs 5:14:59 pm 

Monday 

Day 5 

Thurs 5:15:00 pm 

Fri 5:14:59 pm 

Tuesday 

*Trades Date is based on the time of execution not request. 

Trades placed after 4:55pm EST will be filled on a best efforts basis for that trade day. The proceeds of a sell order will not be sent until the order has settled. 

Precious Metals Dealers 

GBI Direct maintains relationships with various approved dealers that make up GBI Direct’s approved network (the 

“Dealers”) for the purpose of buying and selling Precious Metals on behalf of its Clients. All of the Dealers will provide GBI Direct with LBMA/LPPM good delivery brand bars. The LBMA/LPPM maintains a list of refiners who meet certain criteria for assaying standards and bar quality. 

Precious Metals Purity 

GBI Direct will purchase Precious Metals that have a minimum purity content set forth by either the LBMA/LPPM or Sovereign Governments for all Products except 1kg bars, which will require a minimum purity of .9999 and silver products, which will have a purity content of .999. 

Suspension or Cancellation of Transactions 

GBI Direct may suspend, cancel, or execute only a portion of purchases or sales with respect to Clients in the following circumstances: 

  1. when trading of the Precious Metals is restricted on any one or more markets; 
  2. if GBI Direct determines that it is unable, for any reason, to determine the price or value of the Precious Metals or to execute an order; 
  3. if the purchase or sale would, as determined by GBI Direct in its sole discretion, result in a violation of applicable law or regulation; 
  4. during any disruption in the communication or computation systems used by GBI Direct to communicate with Dealers, to determine the price or value to execute orders; 
  5. during any period in which GBI Direct has suspended its operations or is in the process of effecting an orderly liquidation of GBI Direct; 
  6. upon the occurrence of a force majeure event, including without limitation, war, strike, flood, terrorism, computer “hacking” event, power failure, earthquake or similar event (all such events being “Force Majeure Events”), that would prevent GBI Direct from fulfilling a purchase or sale order; or 
  7. for any other reason if GBI Direct in its sole discretion determines that such order would not be in the best interests of, or could have a material adverse effect on, GBI Direct or any Client. 

Storage of Precious Metals by a Vaulting Partner 

Precious Metals purchased for storage through GBI Direct will be stored by a third party internationally recognized service provider (“Vaulting Partner”) selected by GBI Direct. Current Vaulting Partners are Brink’s Global Services USA, Loomis and Malca Amit. Vaulting Partners are subject to change without notice or may be added in the future. 

Precious Metals stored in any vault are under 24-hour surveillance and are visually inspected on a regular basis by independent auditors. 

Transport and Storage Insurance 

Transport of Precious Metals in connection with a purchase or sale will be provided by ’s Vaulting Partners or by ’s Dealers directly or through insured common carrier transportation services. 

The transport and storage of Precious Metals by a Vaulting Partner will be insured under the Vaulting Partner’s insurance policy. For example, Lloyds of London insures all movement and storage of Precious Metals on behalf of Brink’s, Loomis, and Malca Amit for the full replacement value of the Precious Metals. The policy is an “all risks” policy, but does not cover losses for Force Majeure Events. 

Taking Personal Possession of Precious Metals 

Any request by a Client to take possession of Precious Metals instead of storing them with a Vaulting Partner will be the sole decision of the Client. 

A Client that requests delivery does so with an understanding that it bears all of the risks associated with removing Precious Metals from the Chain of Custody of an approved Vaulting Partner. Included in these risks is the potential loss of value that occurs when attempting to return Precious Metals to the chain of custody. This loss may be a result of the retesting and potential melting and reformation by a certified Refiner/Assayer that may be required prior to a Dealer accepting the Precious Metals. 

The Client also understands the risk and costs associated with self-storing and insuring Precious Metals if it so desires. Precious 

Metals will not be delivered to any Client or its custodian without the acceptance of risk associated with taking delivery outside of the chain of custody. 

Auditing of Precious Metals Holdings 

GBI Direct has contracted with an internationally recognized audit/accounting firm (the “Auditor”) that will enter each Vaulting Partner’s facility in which GBI Direct stores Precious Metals to confirm all the holdings. The Auditor will count each bar and confirm by serial number, if applicable, or by the number of bars/coins in the vault. 

Reporting 

After each trade, GBI Direct will provide the Client with a confirmation detailing the amount of Precious Metals bought or sold, the total execution price at which the Precious Metals were purchased or sold and the aggregate settlement amount. 

On a monthly basis, GBI Direct will send electronically each Client who stores Precious Metals with GBI Direct a Client statement setting forth the value of such Client’s holdings, as defined by the current indicative sale price of the Products back to ’s Dealers, based on the closing price for the last business day of the preceding month. 

The GBI Direct statement will provide a detailed accounting of the holdings and a description of the quantity or fine weight of each bar/coin type held by the Client. 

Tax and Other Considerations 

GBI Direct does not provide tax advice and recommends Clients consult with appropriate investment, tax, legal, and/or other advisors in connection with the purchase, sale, and storage of Precious Metals. 

Transfers 

Precious Metals purchased through GBI Direct can be transferred to a financial institution within the GBI Direct network. GBI Direct will work with the relevant financial institutions to complete the transfer process, and any costs thereof will be borne by the Client. If the transfer is to a financial institution that does not have a relationship with GBI Direct, no transfer will be affected and the Client may be required to liquidate its holdings or accept delivery assuming all risk as outlined under the section titled Taking Personal Possession of Precious Metals. 

Currency Operations 

All purchases and sales of Products and Services will be made in US dollars. 

Regulatory Considerations 

GBI Direct is not a financial institution, broker-dealer or a futures commission merchant, and is not currently subject to regulation by the SEC, the CFTC or any self-regulatory organization. 

GBI Direct is not an investment adviser or a commodity trading advisor and does not provide any investment advice or commodity trading advice. 

Precious Metals are not securities or futures contracts. Therefore, the protections afforded by securities and commodities laws will not apply to an investment in Precious Metals through GBI Direct, including without limitation, the protections provided by SIPC. All transactions are executed by Gold Bullion International, LLC, a commodity broker-dealer registered with the New York Investor Protection Bureau. 

Account Considerations 

Cash balances which are not invested in Precious Metals will remain commingled in one non-interest-bearing account which is not protected by the FDIC. 

Taxpayer ID Information 

U.S. Clients will be required to provide a Social Security Number or Tax Identification Number to as part of the Account opening and Account maintenance process. Under penalty of perjury, Client certifies that: 

The Social Security Number or Taxpayer ID number shown on its application form is its correct taxpayer identification number (or it is waiting for a number to be issued to it); and 

It is not subject to backup withholding because: (a) it is exempt from backup withholding, or (b) it has not been notified by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that it is subject to backup withholding as a result of a failure to report all interest or dividends, or (c) the IRS has notified it that it is no longer subject to backup withholding; and 

It is a U.S. citizen or other U.S. person; and 

The FATCA code(s) entered on its application form (if any) indicating that it is exempt from FATCA reporting is correct. 

MetalStream 

MetalStream allows for systematic investments into physical precious metals on a monthly basis. Your participation in this program is subject to the terms of the customer agreement in conjunction with the funding processes outlined below. To be eligible for any current month’s automatic investment program, you must enroll prior to trade execution date. Trade execution date is five business days following the 16th of the month, or in the event the 16th is not a valid business day, five business days following the next valid business day after the 16th. Please note that funds required for purchase must be in a Clients account prior to the execution of the monthly purchase transaction(s). In the event that adequate funds are not available in your account at the time of execution, GBI will execute the transaction for the amount of funds available in your account, up to the amount that was specified during the MetalStream registration. In selecting this service, you hereby authorize GBI to execute monthly purchase transactions for the desired product and dollar amount that you have specified. Although purchases are made on a monthly basis this program allows for redemptions to be entered any time and executed once daily. 

Multiple products are available within MetalStream, each of which indicates an interest in allocated physical precious metals. The products available are: 

  • 1 oz Gold Maple - SLC vault 
  • 1 oz Gold Bar - SLC and Singapore vault 
  • 1 Kilo Gold – SLC vault 
  • 1000 oz Silver Bar - SLC vault 
  • 100 oz Silver Bar - SLC and Singapore vault 

These positions will represent fractional interest in the metal(s) selected during the enrollment process. When sufficient interest is available for any one product, Clients have the option to convert their interest into whole bar(s) and/or coin(s). This direction can be made via the online web portal. Once holdings are converted, they can be held for further storage or made available for delivery. 

MetalStream Product Offering and Conversion 

Currently two products are available within MetalStream, each of which indicates an interest in allocated physical precious metals. The products available are: (1) Gold 1oz Bars, and (2) Silver 100oz Bars and will be available in both our Salt Lake City and Singapore vaults. These positions will represent fractional interest in the metal(s) selected during the enrollment process. When sufficient interest is available for any one product, Clients have the option to convert their interest into whole bar(s) and/or coin(s). This direction can be made via the online web portal. Once holdings are converted, they can be held for further storage or be made available for delivery. 

Other Terms 

The terms of this Agreement, and Client’s Account with GBI Direct shall also be governed by GBI Direct’s Terms of Servvice and Privacy Policy, the terms of which are incorporated herein by reference and made a part hereof. By checking the box acknowledging that Client has read this Agreement in full and consents to be bound by all of the terms hereof, Client is also acknowledging that it has read in full and consents to be bound by all of the terms of GBI Direct’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. reserves the right to change any of the terms of this Agreement at any time without prior notice to Client, and any such changes will be effective upon Client and its Account(s) five (5) business days from its posting. Client’s continued use of Services and Products following any such modification constitutes its acceptance of any such changes to this Agreement.