Top 11 Gold-Backed Cryptocurrencies to Invest in for 2025

Gold-backed cryptocurrency is a type of digital currency that is issued with a physical gold reserve. These reserves are held either by the issuing institution or by a trusted third party.

Among them, Tether Gold (XAUt) and Pax Gold (PAXG) are the most popular, together making up about 75% of the market.

At the beginning of 2025, there were major changes in the global economy. One of the main reasons is the new administration under Donald Trump. Government spending cuts, threats of trade wars, and changes in relationships between the U.S. and its trading partners have caused market instability, affecting both stock prices and investor sentiment.

As stock markets fell, the crypto market also slowed down, reflecting a more negative outlook among investors.

Meanwhile, gold—one of the world’s most valuable metals—has been rising in price during this uncertain time. For those familiar with economic history, this isn’t surprising. When stock markets fall and high-return assets seem risky, gold often performs well. In fact, between March 14 and March 24, 2025, gold prices rose by about 5%.

While this might not seem like a big deal to crypto investors, this steady and low-volatility growth is quite significant for gold.

Because of this price rise, many crypto investors are now turning their attention to gold-backed cryptocurrencies, which were not so well-known before. While most of the crypto market remains inactive, these tokens are gaining value alongside gold.

If you're looking for a safer investment during uncertain times, these kinds of tokens could be a good choice for you.

In this article, we’ll explore the top 11 gold-backed cryptocurrencies as of March 2025, which together hold the majority of the market share.

What is a Gold-Backed Cryptocurrency?

 A gold-backed cryptocurrency is a digital asset whose value depends on the amount of gold held in reserve. In many cases, the token issuer holds the gold itself. Sometimes, a trusted third-party institution stores the gold.

These types of cryptocurrencies first started appearing around 2019–2020. For example, Tether Gold (XAUt) was launched in 2020, and Pax Gold (PAXG) in 2019.

The Perth Mint Gold Token (PMGT) is another example, which was active between 2019 and 2023.

Such tokens make gold easier to use in a digital and liquid form for on-chain transactions, such as in DeFi apps.

 How Do Gold-Backed Cryptocurrencies Work?

These tokens are based on real gold reserves. Some projects hold the gold themselves, while others assign that responsibility to external trusted institutions.

These tokens are ideal for people who want the safety of real-world assets but also want to trade digitally.

 Gold has long been seen as a valuable commodity and is considered a safe asset during market downturns.

However, these tokens also come with some drawbacks. For example, in fast-growing markets, they may offer lower returns compared to other crypto assets. Also, if there’s not enough transparency about the actual gold reserves and how they are maintained, doubts can arise. Small tokens may also face liquidity issues.

On the positive side, these tokens tend to remain stable during bear markets. Because they are backed by real assets, they can also help win over those who are skeptical about cryptocurrency.

11 Top Gold-Backed Cryptocurrencies

 The 11 gold-backed crypto assets listed below represent nearly the entire market in this niche. As of mid-March 2025, the CoinGecko portal lists only 12 cryptocurrencies under the "Tokenized Gold" category with reportable market capitalizations.

The prices, market caps, growth rates, and other statistics mentioned here are accurate at the time of writing. However, these numbers can change significantly due to the volatile nature of the crypto market. That said, gold backing generally provides these assets with more stability than most other cryptocurrencies (excluding stablecoins).

1. Tether Gold (XAUt)

Tether Gold (XAUt) is the most dominant gold-backed cryptocurrency on the market, which was launched in 2020. It was created by Tether Limited Inc., the same company behind USDT—the world’s most traded crypto asset.

 Each XAUt token is reserved by one troy ounce of gold, which is securely stored in a Swiss vault. Token holders can redeem their XAUt for physical gold, but they must hold enough tokens to cover the price of one full London Good Delivery gold bar (around 400 troy ounces/XAUt). Those holding smaller amounts often convert it to other assets, usually USDT. XAUt is tradable on Bybit Web3 DEX Pro using Ethereum (ETH) in a decentralized way.

 Over the last 10 days, XAUt’s value has risen by 5%, exactly matching the price movement of gold, which it closely tracks. As an ERC-20 token on Ethereum, XAUt has led the Tokenized Gold space for years. It currently has a market cap of around $744 million and is trading at $3,023.24.

2. Pax Gold (PAXG)

Pax Gold (PAXG) is the second-largest gold-backed crypto. Each token is backed by one troy ounce of gold stored in a vault in London, managed by Brinks Security, a globally renowned security firm.

 Launched in 2019 by New York–based Paxos Trust Company, PAXG has a market cap of $652 million. Together with XAUt, it controls about 75% of the total market capitalization of the gold-backed crypto sector. PAXG also follows the price of gold and has appreciated around 5% in the past 10 days.

3. Quorium Gold (QGOLD)

 Quorium Gold (QGOLD) is currently the third-largest gold-backed crypto, with a market cap of $253 million. QGOLD is also like XAUt and PAXG, is backed by one troy ounce of gold and monitors its price. The token was launched in late 2023 on BNB Chain by Quorium, a company that focuses on sustainable gold mining. QGOLD is basically backed by certified untapped gold reserves verified by NI 43-101 reports under the supervision of the Canadian Securities Administrators. While the company also mines gold, its main focus is leveraging pre-verified reserves.

4. Kinesis Gold (KAU)

 Kinesis Gold (KAU) is a type of cryptocurrency backed by gold, launched by a blockchain finance company called Kinesis based in the Cayman Islands. Unlike other tokens that are backed by one ounce of gold, this token is backed by just one gram of gold, so its price is slightly different. It is currently trading at around $97, which is close to the price of one gram of gold. Its current market cap is $139 million.

 Kinesis works with a major global gold exchange called ABX, which has many secure vault partners such as Malca-Amit, Loomis International, and Brinks. They safely store the gold backing the KAU token.

5. Novem Gold (NNN)

 Novem Gold (NNN) is a gold-backed cryptocurrency launched in 2022 by an Austria-based company called Novem Gold Blockchain GmbH. The token is built on the BNB chain, and is stored in a secure vault in Austria, backed by the company's own gold reserves.

 With this NNN token, users can easily redeem gold bars from LBMA-approved dealers. The current market cap of NNN is $23 million.

6. VeraOne (VRO)

 Like KAU, the VeraOne (VRO) token is also backed by one gram of gold, but the gold mostly comes from recycled industrial sources. This is an eco-friendly project and one of the older gold-backed cryptocurrencies. It was launched on Ethereum in May 2020 by a UK-based company called LinGOLD Ltd.

 The gold used in VRO not only follows the LBMA standard but is also 999.9 or 99.99% pure. If needed, it can be converted into legal tender approved by the Government of Gibraltar. VeraOne stores its gold reserves in several secure vaults at Geneva Freeport in Switzerland.

 Currently, VRO has a market value of around $29 million, which might seem small, but it is still the fifth largest project in the tokenized gold category.

7. Comtech Gold (CGO)

Comtech Gold (CGO) is a token whose price and support are based on one gram of 999.9 pure gold. It was launched in 2022 on the XDC Network or XinFin blockchain by the Dubai-based Comtech Gold company, designed to meet the demand for Shariah-compliant tokenized gold in the Middle East.

 The gold backing this token is stored and insured by a UAE-based security company called Transguard Group. Users can redeem gold if they have at least 10 grams.

 The CGO token is regulated by DAFZA and approved by DMCC — both government organizations in Dubai. Its running market value is $10.65 million, and it trades at one gram equivalent values of gold at $97.

8. Gold DAO (GLDT)

 Gold DAO (GOLDAO) and GLDT are two related gold-supported crypto tokens built on the Internet Computer (ICP) blockchain by a decentralized project called Gold DAO. GOLDAO is the main governance token, while GLDT is a utility token backed by gold and designed for easy trading across multiple blockchains. 100 GLDT equals 1 gram of gold.

 The gold backing these tokens is stored in Switzerland and regularly audited by trusted third parties like KPMG.

Gold DAO currently has a market cap of $12 million, while GLDT has a market cap of just $610,000 - the lowest of all notable gold-backed tokens.

9. tGOLD (tXAU)

 tGOLD (tXAU) was launched in late 2022 by a Dubai-based fintech company called Aurus. This token is built on the Ethereum and Polygon blockchains. Each tXAU token is backed by LBMA-approved gold. According to Aurus' website, the gold is kept in secure vaults and regularly audited, although the exact location is not disclosed.

 The current market cap of tGOLD is $7.92 million. Although it is claimed to be backed by one gram of gold, its current price is $84.84 — lower than the typical $97 price of gold. This difference may be due to supply and demand imbalances.

10. Kinka (XNK)

 Kinka (XNK) is an ERC-20 based crypto token that tracks the price of one troy ounce of 99.9% pure gold. It was launched on the Ethereum blockchain by Kinka (BVI) Ltd. in March 2024 and later joined the Cardano (ADA) network in September 2024.

 The gold for this token is supplied by Japan’s top gold trading company, Daichi Commodities Co. Ltd. This gold meets LBMA standards and is stored in secure vaults managed by Loomis International in different locations worldwide.

 It can be traded on exchanges like Uniswap (UNI), or bought directly from Kinka’s website, but a minimum order of 0.1 ETH is required.

 The current market value of XNK is around $1.5 million.

11. VNX Gold (VNXAU)

 VNX Gold (VNXAU) is a multichain crypto token backed by LBMA-grade gold stored in a secure vault in Liechtenstein and registered with the country's Financial Market Authority (FMA). Although Liechtenstein is not widely known for tokenized gold, its economic stability and strict regulations make this token important.VNXAU currently exists on the Ethereum, Solana (SOL), and Polygon blockchains.

 Its current market value is only $2.55 million.

 Final Thoughts

 Gold has always been a valuable asset throughout human history, and it remains a popular investment in modern economics. During economic uncertainty and downturns, gold acts as a strong hedge. Tokenized gold is a modern solution that combines real gold backing with the ease of digital trading, offering investors new opportunities.