What is PAX Gold (PAXG)?

PAX Gold, or PAXG, is a crypto token backed by physical gold. Each PAXG represents one fine troy ounce of gold that meets the London Good Delivery standard used in the wholesale gold market. It is issued by Paxos, the company that also issues the USDG and PYUSD stablecoins, and it trades around the clock on crypto exchanges.

What is PAXG crypto?

Paxos launched PAXG on September 5, 2019, as an Ethereum token, with approval from the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). Decrypt reported at launch that holders could use the token's blockchain address to look up details of the gold behind it, such as bar serial number, brand, weight and purity.

As of October 2026, Paxos's documentation names Paxos Trust Company, N.A. as the issuer. Skadden reported in December 2025 that Paxos had received approval to convert its New York trust charter into a national trust charter, which puts its US activity under the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. PAXG is a form of tokenization, putting a claim on a real asset onto a blockchain.

Is PAXG backed by gold?

Paxos says each token is backed one for one by physical gold in LBMA-accredited vaults in London, segregated for the benefit of PAXG holders. It publishes monthly reserve reports and attestations by an independent accounting firm. RWA.xyz lists Brink's as the vault custodian.

Holders can redeem with Paxos. RWA.xyz says verified users can redeem for dollars, and that physical gold requires more than 430 PAXG and is handled through through a scheduled London Good Delivery handover. Holders cannot inspect the vault themselves, so they rely on Paxos's reporting, a trust issue explained in what is proof of reserves.

What is the difference between PAXG and XAUt?

Both tokens represent one troy ounce of gold, so their value moves with the gold price rather than staying at one dollar. The differences are structural.

• Issuer. PAXG comes from Paxos in the US. XAUt comes from TG Commodities, a Tether company in El Salvador.
• Regulator. PAXG launched under NYDFS approval. RWA.xyz lists XAUt under El Salvador's digital assets regulator, CNAD.
• Vaults and delivery. PAXG gold sits in London. XAUt physical redemptions are delivered to an address in Switzerland.
• Redemption. Both set the threshold for physical gold at about 430 tokens. RWA.xyz lists a 0.25% redemption fee for XAUt.

The full picture on Tether's token is in what is Tether Gold (XAUt).

How does PAXG compare with owning gold?

Owning a gold bar means storing and insuring it yourself, and selling it through a dealer. PAXG holders own a token that can be sent to a crypto wallet and traded at any hour, with no storage fee charged by Paxos. In return, they take on issuer risk, smart contract risk and the security of their own wallet. How gold itself behaves as an asset is covered in bitcoin vs gold.