The CACG Slabs, They are a Comin'

Recently, I was fortunate to get a hardhat tour of the CAC operations here in Virginia Beach from Brian Kint (CAC Grading, CFO). While finishing touches are still being made, I was really impressed with the new facility. The building is over 30,000 square feet with state-of-the-art security and a layout designed to scale up operations.

Until now, it’s been easy to think of CACG as a theoretical idea. There’s no shortage of speculation on the bourse and social media pages about the impact this new grading company will have on the market. The launch is a few months behind schedule which has given rise to more gossip, however, the rare coin market is feeling rather resilient these days. NGC and PCGS are seeing strong demand for their services, thanks to a robust market for rare coins in general, but also due to a surging bullion market that has sent gold prices over $2,000, and silver over $25 per ounce.

The popular sentiment is there should be plenty of room for a new contender, especially one with the pedigree of CAC. Both NGC and PCGS are deeply entrenched in the market—each with a nearly-forty year head start on CACG. Nobody is overlooking John Albanese (CACG, CEO/President) and his lasting legacy to the community but the certification market leaders also have deep ties to the world’s premiere auction houses and retailers. These relationships take years to cement and trust among international trading partners is especially complex.

Kenny Duncan, Jr. of U.S. Coins & Jewelry, an established seller of high-end slabs says, “the emergence of [CACG] will show the community that a fresh alternative exists which collectors and dealers can confidently evaluate and appreciate the beauty and value of their cherished coins.”

WHAT CAN WE EXPECT FROM THE NEW CACG?

For starters, Albanese informed me that they will start with a “soft launch,” initially only accepting submissions from their foundational investors. Naturally, this gives them a chance to work out the kinks from receiving, to grading, slabbing, and shipping. One area of concern is making sure there’s a catalog entry for every item that comes in, which is exciting for us here at CDN, because we have partnered with CACG in supplying their coin numbering system! This means there will always be a direct link between our pricing, CACG pop reports, and so on.

Additionally, you can expect grading to be conservative. Ron Drzewucki (CACG, Grading Finalizer) tells me the goal at CACG is “to get the grade right the first time. We’re not interested in profiting from re-submissions.”

On the variety front, CACG is accepting a wide range of varieties cataloged by:

• Fivaz-Stanton (FS ending in “01”)
• Cohen (C)
• Sheldon (S)
• Newcomb (N)
• Logan-McCloskey (LM)
• John Reich (JR)
• Browning (B)
• Overton (O)
• Bolender (B)
• Bowers-Borckhardt (BB)
• Van Allen-Mallis (VAM)

Much like a new restaurant, I think it will take a few months for the new operation to get the new staff up and running, and iron out the day-to-day details. Here at CDN, we won’t jump into a new pricing database for the slabs until the market has a chance to sort things out. Until then, stay glued to our web site for news and video postings.