MetalsPlace

What “verified supplier” means

MetalsPlace is a noticeboard, not a broker or an escrow service. We never handle your money or your goods, and we are not party to any trade agreed here. The verified badge tells you one narrow thing — and it is important you know exactly which.

What we check

Before a supplier is marked verified, we confirm that:

  • •the business they name appears to be a real, identifiable company;
  • •the person holding the account can demonstrate a connection to that company, normally by controlling its email domain or website;
  • •the account details they gave us are internally consistent and their listings match the business they describe.

What it does not mean

A verified badge is not a statement that:

  • •the supplier is honest, solvent, or able to deliver;
  • •the material exists, is of the grade or quantity stated, or is legally theirs to sell;
  • •prices, assays, certificates or documents shown to you are genuine;
  • •MetalsPlace has inspected any goods, visited any site, or endorsed any trade.

We do not carry out financial, criminal, sanctions or beneficial-ownership checks. Verification can also go stale: a company that was trading when we checked may not be trading now.

Do your own due diligence — every time

Verified or not, the checks below are yours to make. They are the ordinary discipline of cross-border metals trading, and no badge on any platform replaces them.

Confirm the company independently

Look it up in its own country's companies register. Check the registration number, the registered address and that it is still active — not just that a website exists.

Speak to a human, on a channel you chose

Call a number you found yourself, not only the one in the listing. Free email addresses and messaging apps as the sole point of contact are a warning sign.

Never pay in advance to a stranger

Advance fees, 'clearance', 'export permit' or 'insurance' payments requested before any goods move are the most common fraud in this trade. Use an escrow, a documentary letter of credit, or inspection-on-delivery terms.

Insist on independent inspection

Have a recognised inspection company (SGS, Bureau Veritas, Alex Stewart or similar) sample and assay the material, appointed and paid by you — not by the seller, and not a name the seller suggests.

Treat documents as claims, not proof

Assay certificates, bills of lading and licences are trivially forged. Verify each directly with the issuing body.

Be wary of prices that are too good

Metal well below the market rate, especially precious metal offered at a steep discount, is the oldest hook there is.

Tell us about a bad listing

Every listing has a report link. If something looks wrong — a duplicate, a false claim, an advance-fee approach — report it. We remove listings and suspend accounts on evidence, and reports are the fastest way we hear about it.

Browse the board

In short: the badge means we checked who the seller says they are. It does not mean we vouch for them, their goods, or any deal you strike. MetalsPlace accepts no liability for losses arising from trades arranged through the site. Trade as carefully with a verified supplier as you would with anyone else.