The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has released its Consultation Paper on the Proposed Good Delivery Guidelines 2025, marking a significant move to strengthen India’s position in the global precious metals market. These proposed guidelines aim to allow gold refined by any Indian or international refinery—subject to compliance with responsible sourcing and best-practice standards—to be deliverable on the India International Bullion Exchange (IIBX). This blog provides a concise yet comprehensive overview of the paper and the broader vision it supports.
Why the New Good Delivery Guidelines Matter
The primary objective of the consultation is straightforward yet transformative:
to broaden the range of refiners whose gold can be delivered on IIBX, provided they meet global technical and responsible-sourcing benchmarks.
This aligns with global trends where ethical supply chains, transparency, and environmental consciousness increasingly shape market dynamics. By opening the door to responsibly sourced gold from anywhere in the world, IFSCA aims to elevate India’s bullion market to internationally recognized standards.
India’s Aspiration: From Market Taker to Market Maker
India has long been one of the world’s biggest consumers and importers of gold. The establishment of the IIBX at GIFT IFSC—a recommendation from NITI Aayog’s 2018 gold market reform report—was a strategic step toward giving India a commanding presence in bullion price discovery.
Launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister on July 29, 2022, the IIBX was envisioned as an institution that would not only organize and streamline gold trading but also empower India to shape global gold prices. The Prime Minister emphasized that India must evolve from merely being a large consumer to becoming a market maker in the precious metals domain. The Good Delivery Guidelines are a critical building block in realizing this vision.
Understanding the Importance of Responsible Sourcing
Gold does not arrive in its pure form. It is extracted with impurities and processed using techniques such as aqua regia or electrolysis. Moreover, gold—as a mined commodity—is intertwined with environmental and social risks. Issues such as child labor, unsafe working conditions, conflict financing, and ecological damage have fueled global efforts to ensure responsible supply chains.
International frameworks like the OECD Due Diligence Guidance have shaped the compliance ecosystem, requiring refiners and traders to adhere to ethical, traceable, and transparent sourcing practices. Many leading industry bodies—including LBMA and UAE Good Delivery—maintain Good Delivery Lists that impose stringent standards.
IFSCA’s proposal aligns India with these global benchmarks, ensuring that only refiners meeting both technical purity levels and responsible-sourcing criteria can supply bullion to IIBX. This raises the credibility of Indian bullion markets and encourages domestic refineries to upgrade their processes.
Expected Industry Impact
The proposed guidelines are poised to:
- Boost responsible refining activity in India and abroad
- Enhance the flow of ethically sourced and quality-certified bullion to IIBX
- Foster a transparent and efficient bullion market ecosystem at GIFT IFSC
- Support India’s goal of becoming a global hub for bullion trading
- Promote ease of doing business for refiners, traders, and market participants
The guidelines are also aligned with the Prime Minister’s vision of enabling orderly market development and strengthening India’s role in the international precious metals value chain.
Stakeholder Participation Invited
IFSCA has invited comments from the public, industry players, refiners, market professionals, and other stakeholders. The draft guidelines are available on the IFSCA website, and inputs can be submitted by December 31, 2025, in the prescribed format.