SGX-listed pawnbrokers, stocks ride gold rally as precious metal breaks US$5,000 level 

[SINGAPORE] Pawnbrokers have emerged as beneficiaries of gold’s historic rally, as the yellow metal crossed the psychological US$5,000 mark and set yet another record. 

After already gaining much ground in the past year or so, gold prices are still rising on a steep trajectory as heightened geopolitical tensions drive the need for portfolio diversification, said Alexandra Symeonidi, senior corporate credit and sustainability analyst from William Blair’s emerging markets debt team.

“We have started the year with geopolitical risks back on the table, and gold has been rallying on the back of the Venezuela news and the Greenland headlines,” she said.

Symeonidi noted that macroeconomic conditions have also contributed to gold’s rally: “Among investors, macro uncertainty has prevailed as the Federal Reserve’s path is unclear, given question marks about the US economy and the next Fed leadership. Gold also firmed (up) as news of the Fed-related subpoenas added to broader market uncertainty.”

On the Singapore Exchange (SGX), shares of pawnbrokers and other gold plays soared on Monday (Jan 26). They have also made steady gains in the year to date, and in the past year.

Pawnbroker, financier and luxury retailer MoneyMax Financial Services was the biggest beneficiary, soaring 11.6 per cent on Monday. It has surged 56.5 per cent year to date, and is up nearly 320 per cent over the past year.

This comes as the Catalist-listed pawnbroker’s proposal to transfer its listing to the mainboard on Jan 23 received in-principle approval from SGX. The move to the mainboard – which draws larger companies – is set to enhance shareholder value and provide MoneyMax a platform commensurate with its scale and market position, given its growth in both network and earnings over recent years.

Gold producer CNMC Goldmine was not far behind, with a 12.7 per cent gain at the end of trading, having booked gains of more than 416 per cent over the past year.

MoneyMax competitor ValueMax shot up around 12.4 per cent on Monday and is up 19.2 per cent year to date. It has spiked close to 160 per cent in the past year.

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Aspial Lifestyle , which owns jewellery chains Lee Hwa and Goldheart and pawnbroker Maxi-Cash, rose 13 per cent on Monday. It has jumped 41.9 per cent year to date, and about 158.5 per cent in the past year.

Meanwhile, the SPDR Gold Shares exchange-traded fund climbed 2.8 per cent on Monday, having risen about 72.5 per cent in the past year.

Proxies for gold

Pawnbroking firms are regarded as proxies to the increase in gold prices, as they hold large inventories of the yellow metal, which is used as collateral for loans. 

Carmen Lee, OCBC head of equity research, noted that most moneylending companies usually accept gold jewellery as pledges for cash and usually hold a large percentage of gold inventories relative to other assets, such as diamonds. 

“Gold prices rose 65 per cent in 2025 and are up 15 per cent so far this year. (Therefore), most of these inventories held by the moneylenders are likely to be at prices which are significantly lower than current prices,” she said. 

This could imply potential gains for these companies, she added. 

Alfie Yeo, senior research analyst at RHB Singapore, concurred that higher gold prices can cause pawnbrokers’ collateralised gold inventory to be more valuable.

“The value of loans has historically been positively correlated with gold prices. Pawnbrokers get to lend more – (with) better loan to value – for higher interest income as gold prices increase,” he said. 

Since higher gold prices tend to drive more loans, which in turn boosts interest income and earnings, higher gold prices should be positively correlated with share prices “to some extent”, Yeo said.

“Based on our analysis, the correlation of pawnbrokers’ share price to gold price ranges from 0.5 to 0.8, with pure-play pawnbrokers at a relatively strong 0.8,” he said.

Continued momentum in 2026

Having enjoyed strong gains in 2025, SGX-listed pawnbrokers could see continued momentum in 2026, said OCBC’s Lee. 

“As shared in Q1, due to their holdings of gold assets and with the sharp appreciation in gold prices in the last one year, these companies are being reassessed based on their gold inventories,” she said. 

Gold could get even pricier.

William Blair’s Symeonidi pointed to a “growing consensus among market participants that the dollar might remain weak” – a trend that could push gold prices higher.

Moreover, persistent reserve-diversification trends suggest that central banks could continue to be substantial net buyers of gold this year, she said.

“In particular, we believe that the People’s Bank of China has both the ability and the willingness to continue increasing its gold exposure, likely at the expense of further reducing its US dollar exposure – an ongoing dynamic that should remain supportive for gold prices,” said Symeonidi.

With gold remaining as the easiest and traditionally the preferred asset form to pledge for cash, its strong performance will continue to benefit SGX-listed pawnbrokers, OCBC’s Lee said. 

Additional reporting by Shikhar Gupta