Bullion storage options in Texas, a guide to the state depository and vault rules

What to take away

How Texas approaches state-backed bullion storage

Most states leave bullion custody to private vault companies and banks. Texas built a depository of its own, then moved the metal the state already owned into it.

The authority split matters. The federal government sets coinage, currency and interstate commerce rules. States set property, contract and insurance law. A guide to those two layers sits on the federal branches of government page. Bullion sits at the join: a Texas contract, a federal tax rule, a private carrier.

Federal agencies touch the market in narrow ways. The U.S. Mint strikes coins. The CFTC oversees futures, not vaulted bars. The SEC and FINRA cover securities, and bullion is not one. The IRS taxes a sale, not the storage.

Notices that change reporting or currency rules appear in the Federal Register money section. A threshold change can reach a Texas vault account.

State officials do not inspect private vaults the way they inspect banks. Outside the state depository, the contract is your main protection.

The Texas Bullion Depository: structure and what it accepts

The Texas Bullion Depository was created by legislation in 2015 and opened for business in 2018. It operates in Leander, just north of Austin, with the comptroller's office as the supervising state agency.

The comptroller's office first contracted with a private Leander company, Lone Star Tangible Assets, to build the vault and run operations under state rules.

The depository holds metal for account holders rather than selling metal. You buy elsewhere, deliver the metal in, and the depository stores it under an account agreement.

Accepted forms include gold, silver, platinum and palladium bars and coins that meet the depository's fineness and packaging standards. Common bullion coins and standard minted bars usually qualify. Numismatic or damaged pieces may not.

Intake is the slow part. Metal is weighed, tested and matched to your paperwork before it is booked to your account. Expect a hold while that happens.

The depository was designed to hold state owned bullion as well, which gives it a public function beyond private storage. It is not a bank. Deposits are not FDIC insured, and the state does not guarantee the value of your metal.

Private vaults in Dallas and Houston compared

Private vaults in Dallas and Houston are independent businesses. They range from purpose-built facilities with armed logistics to small deposit box style operations. Texas issues no vault license, so the storage contract and its insurance clause carry the weight.

International Depository Services Group runs a Dallas vault through its IDS of Texas arm. It holds allocated metal for dealers, self-directed IRA custodians and individual account holders.

Most metals IRA custodians place client metal with out of state depositories such as Delaware Depository. Check the facility address before you assume your bars sit in Texas.

Dallas vaults serve north Texas and interstate clients. Houston vaults serve the Gulf Coast, energy money and international trade, and some sit near the port and airport corridors.

Houston leans on bank vault rooms. Amegy Bank, based in Houston, and Frost Bank, based in San Antonio with branches across the metro, rent safe deposit boxes at branch locations. A box costs little and holds only what fits.

Dallas has more depth. Comerica Bank, headquartered downtown, rents safe deposit boxes across north Texas, and IDS of Texas runs a vault for allocated metal.

Two Texas trust companies handle the IRA route. GoldStar Trust Company of Amarillo and Strata Trust Company of Waco act as custodians for self-directed precious metals IRAs and arrange storage at approved depositories.

The city matters less than the building, the insurance, the audit and the paperwork. A hardened concrete structure with segregated cages is a different product from a deposit box in a storefront.

Ask each operator four things in writing: who holds legal title, what insurance covers the metal, who audits the inventory, and how a withdrawal is scheduled. A vault that cannot answer all four is not comparable to one that can.

For how a private vault stacks up against a home safe or a bank box, see this guide to bullion formats and mint specifications.

Insurance requirements and coverage limits under Texas law

Texas does not require a private bullion vault to carry a set amount of insurance. No state license guarantees your bars are covered.

What exists is contract law. Your storage agreement states whether the operator insures the metal, up to what limit, and what happens if the limit is too low for your holding. Read that clause before you sign.

A market value policy pays what the metal is worth at the loss. A limit per account or per facility caps the payout. If a vault holds $200 million in metal and carries $50 million in coverage, the shortfall is shared among account holders.

For the state depository, insurance and bonding terms sit in the depository's own rules and account agreement, not in a general Texas insurance statute for vaults.

Home policies rarely cover bullion well. Standard homeowners and renters policies often cap or exclude coins and bullion, and a rider may be needed.

Bank boxes do not close that gap either. The bank insures the building, not the contents, and box leases usually limit the bank's liability. The bullion pricing guide helps you line up the coverage questions before you commit.

Who pays when a dealer or custodian fails is partly a consumer protection question. Federal guidance on money and credit fraud covers disputes, chargebacks and reporting routes that apply to bullion deals.

Allocated versus unallocated storage in Texas facilities

Allocated storage means specific bars or coins are titled to you and held separately. The serial numbers appear on your statement. You own those pieces, not a share of a pile.

Unallocated storage means you own a claim on a pool of metal. It is cheaper because the operator can move metal around and hold less idle inventory. It is also weaker if the operator fails, because you are a creditor.

Most Texas private vaults offer both. The state depository deals in allocated accounts, and IDS of Texas markets allocated storage in Dallas. Some operators offer a middle option, sometimes called pooled allocated, where bars are segregated but not individually numbered to you.

A bank box is allocated by default. What you put in is what you take out, and no other customer's metal shares the space.

Allocated storage usually costs more per month and may carry a minimum holding. That premium buys clearer title and a simpler claim if something goes wrong.

If the amount is small, unallocated can be reasonable. If it is a meaningful part of your net worth, allocated is the safer default. Get the title language in writing either way.

Access, audit and withdrawal procedures

Access is where storage contracts differ most, and where investors get surprised.

Audits matter as much as access. Ask who counts the metal, how often, and whether an outside firm signs off. An internal count is weaker than a third party audit you can read. Bank box contents are never audited, because the bank does not know what sits inside.

Withdrawal can be refused or delayed if your account is not current or if the metal sits in an unallocated pool that has to be sourced. Allocated accounts are easier to pull from.

A Dallas or Houston vault usually sets notice periods for large withdrawals. A bank box needs you at the branch during business hours, with photo ID and the key.

Weights and purity claims should trace to recognized measurement standards. NIST metrology underpins the calibration chain behind balances, assays and the certificates a vault relies on.

Costs, fees and how to compare Texas storage options

Storage fees in Texas are usually quoted as an annual percentage of metal value, with a monthly minimum. Small holdings pay more per ounce in percentage terms.

Private vault storage typically runs 0.4% to 1% of metal value a year for allocated holdings, and less for unallocated pools. Monthly minimums commonly land between $20 and $50. Intake and assay fees typically run $25 to $100 per bar on a first deposit.

Bank safe deposit boxes are priced by size, not by value. Annual rent in Texas branches typically runs $40 to $300, with larger boxes and downtown locations at the top of that range. Contents are not insured by the bank or the FDIC.

The state depository publishes its own fee schedule inside its account agreement. Ask for the storage rate, the intake fee, the withdrawal fee and any account minimum before you compare it with a private vault.

Watch the whole fee stack, not the headline rate. Intake and assay fees, shipping, insurance surcharges, withdrawal fees and account minimums all land on you.

Comparing two quotes means comparing the same holding. Price a fixed amount of gold at each vault, add every fee for one year, then add the cost of one withdrawal. If gold is at $3,000 an ounce, 100 ounces is $300,000, and a 0.5% annual fee on it is $1,500 a year before intake and shipping.

A cheap rate with a weak insurance clause is not cheaper. A higher rate with clear title and a readable audit is often the better trade.

Records and documentation to keep for stored bullion

Your records are the proof of what you own. A vault statement alone is not enough, because it is the operator's document, not yours. A bank box statement is weaker still: it names the box, never the contents.

Keep the purchase invoice, the assay certificate, the bar or coin serial numbers, and the storage agreement. Add fee receipts and every account statement.

Store copies off site and in digital form. Reconcile the statement against your own list at least once a year. If a bar number changes without a transaction, ask why in writing.

The failure mode is dull and common: a flood, a house move or a death leaves an heir with no way to prove the metal exists. The gold bullion buying guide shows how quickly a claim stalls without paperwork.

The platinum and palladium bullion guide walks through what to keep and how to hand it to someone else. The silver bullion guide shows how a records system is rebuilt after a loss.

Common questions

Is the Texas Bullion Depository run by the state?

Yes. It is a state chartered entity supervised by the Texas comptroller's office, and it holds both state owned and privately owned metal. It stores metal rather than selling it. The vault sits in Leander, north of Austin.

Which private vaults and storage options operate in Texas?

International Depository Services Group runs a Dallas vault through IDS of Texas. Comerica Bank, based in Dallas, rents safe deposit boxes across north Texas, and Frost Bank and Amegy Bank do the same across the Houston area. GoldStar Trust Company in Amarillo and Strata Trust Company in Waco handle self-directed precious metals IRAs that place metal at depositories.

Are private vaults in Dallas and Houston regulated by Texas?

Not by a vault license. They are ordinary businesses bound by contract law, so the storage agreement and its insurance clause carry most of the weight. Ask for the audit report and the title language before you sign.

Does the FDIC or the state insure bullion in a vault?

No. FDIC coverage applies to bank deposits, not bullion or the contents of a safe deposit box. Coverage comes from the vault's own insurance policy or from a separate policy you buy.

What is the difference between allocated and unallocated storage?

Allocated means specific numbered bars are titled to you. Unallocated means you hold a claim on a pool, which is cheaper and weaker if the operator fails. The state depository deals in allocated accounts.