// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did MKS PAMP say to gold? You're a precious metal to me, I weigh on you.
 | |
| Type | Privately held |
|---|---|
| Industry | Precious metals |
| Founded | 1979; merged with PAMP SA in 2021 |
| Founder | Mahmoud Kassem Shakarchi |
| Headquarters | , |
Key people | Marwan Shakarchi (Executive Board Member) James Emmett (CEO) |
| Products | Refined precious metals |
| Parent | MKS PAMP GROUP |
| Website | mkspamp.com |
MKS PAMP (an abbreviation of Mahmoud Kassem Shakarchi Produits Artistiques Metaux Precieux), also known as MKS PAMP SA is a Swiss company specializing in the trading, refining, and fabrication of precious metals such as gold, silver, platinum, and palladium. It is part of the MKS PAMP GROUP and is headquartered in Geneva.[1] The company operates a major refinery and mint in Castel San Pietro, Ticino, and maintains global trading hubs in Geneva, New York, and Hong Kong.[2][3]
History
[edit]Founding and early development
[edit]MKS PAMP traces its origins to two companies: PAMP SA (Produits Artistiques Métaux Précieux), a precious-metals refining and minting business founded in Castel San Pietro, Ticino, Switzerland, in 1977; and MKS (Switzerland) SA, a Geneva-based precious-metals trading company founded in 1979 by Mahmoud Kassem Shakarchi.[4][5]
In 1981, MKS acquired a majority stake in PAMP, extending the company's activities from precious-metals trading into refining and minting.[4][5]
Following Mahmoud Shakarchi's death in 1983, his children Karma and Marwan Shakarchi assumed leadership of the company.[5][6]
International expansion and accreditations
[edit]Over the following decades, the company expanded its international presence, establishing offices in financial and precious-metals trading centres including Hong Kong and New York.[5]
In 2003, PAMP was appointed an Approved Referee for the London Good Delivery system by the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA).[7][8]
Formation of MKS PAMP SA
[edit]In 2021, MKS (Switzerland) SA and PAMP SA merged to form MKS PAMP SA, combining the company's trading, refining, fabrication and minting activities within a single corporate structure.[9][10]
In November 2025, MKS PAMP acquired full ownership of Gold Token S.A. as part of its activities involving tokenised precious-metals products.[11]
Operations
[edit]MKS PAMP is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, where its trading and treasury services are based. Its refining and minting operations are located in Castel San Pietro in the Swiss canton of Ticino.[4][6]
The company operates across precious-metals refining, minting, trading, vaulting and storage, serving financial institutions and other participants in the precious-metals industry. It produces cast and minted bars in gold, silver, platinum and palladium.[5][12]
MKS PAMP is listed on the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) and London Platinum and Palladium Market (LPPM) Good Delivery Lists. It is also one of a small number of refineries worldwide designated as a Good Delivery Referee by both organisations.[13]
Sustainability
[edit]In 2022, MKS PAMP became the first precious-metals company to have science-based emissions reduction targets approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).[14][15]
In the same year, it launched a portfolio of products with carbon footprints independently verified by the Carbon Trust.[16][17]
Controversies and allegations
[edit]Allegations of bribery involving U.S. officials
[edit]In 2025, a meeting between Swiss business executives and U.S. President Donald Trump sparked a legal and ethical debate. MKS PAMP's CEO presented Trump with an engraved gold bar, while another executive gifted a Rolex desk clock, during discussions that preceded a U.S.-Swiss tariff agreement.[18] Swiss legal experts noted that Article 322 of the Swiss Criminal Code forbids offering "an undue advantage" to a foreign official to influence official actions. They argued that expensive gifts could be considered an "undue advantage," and that a change in tariff policy could constitute a quid pro quo.[18] MKS PAMP stated the gifts were intended for the Presidential Library and were cleared with White House ethics counsel, asserting full compliance with U.S. and Swiss law. Two Green Party Swiss parliamentarians called for an investigation by the Swiss Attorney-General's office. The Swiss government stated the meeting was a "private initiative".[18][19][20]
Environmental and human rights concerns in supply chain
[edit]Between 2015 and 2016, gold from Liberia's New Liberty Mine, which experienced significant pollution events (including releases of cyanide and arsenic that contaminated waterways),[21] was shipped to MKS PAMP's refinery in Switzerland.[22] Affected communities reported health issues and filed a complaint with European development banks, leading to a formal mediation process.[22][23]
In 2022, the Swiss Federal Court ruled against an NGO, the Society for Threatened Peoples, which sought import data from Swiss refiners including MKS PAMP. The Court upheld that such data was protected by tax and business secrecy laws. NGOs criticized the ruling as a setback for supply chain transparency.[22]
Human rights allegations in Burkina Faso
[edit]An independent investigation published by CareTaker News Now in 2025 alleged that subcontractors operating in supply chains feeding gold to MKS PAMP in Burkina Faso were linked to violence, including killings and land-grabbing, to control artisanal mining sites.[24]
References
[edit]- ↑ "Digital Gold Wave Sees Swiss Trader MKS PAMP Reviving Token".
- ↑ "Gold Boom Spurs Trader MKS PAMP to Boost Hong Kong Presence". Bloomberg.
- ↑ Full members' list Archived 28 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine, London Bullion Market Association
- 1 2 3 "PAMP SA: International Refiner" (PDF). Gold Bars Worldwide. Grendon International Research. 2014. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "PAMP Suisse Gold Bars: A Guide to Their History and Product Range". Silver Bullion. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- 1 2 "Who We Are". MKS PAMP. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ Murray, Stewart (2017). "Historical Review of the Good Delivery Applications and Proactive Monitoring" (PDF). London Bullion Market Association. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "Credentials". MKS PAMP. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "Fundamentals of precious metals: PAMP". Swiss Gold Safe. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "Announcement on the Name Change of International Member MKS (Switzerland) SA". Shanghai Gold Exchange. 2 September 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "Digital Gold Wave Prompts Switzerland Trader MKS PAMP to Revive Token". Bloomberg. 20 November 2025. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "Refining". MKS PAMP. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "Ensuring Excellence: How LBMA Referees Uphold Gold and Silver Standards". The Alchemist. London Bullion Market Association. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "MKS PAMP first precious metals refinery to set SBTi-approved carbon emissions reduction targets". Mining.com. 19 May 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "Target Dashboard". Science Based Targets initiative. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "Carbon Verified Products". MKS PAMP. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- ↑ "MKS PAMP, UBS launch carbon neutral gold-backed ETF". Mining.com. 29 March 2023. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
- 1 2 3 Wong Sak Hoi, Geraldine; Bannerman, Isabelle (9 December 2025). "Is offering a Rolex to a foreign official considered bribery under Swiss law?". SWI swissinfo.ch. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
- ↑ "Return to the Middle Ages: Switzerland Sent Trump Gifts to Lower Tariffs". News feed at Inbox.lv. 17 November 2025. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
- ↑ Alegre, J. P. (17 November 2025). "Swiss Tariffs Cut to 15% After Business Leaders Present Trump With Gold Gifts". the deep dive. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
- ↑ "Victims of Liberian gold mine disaster see groundbreaking complaint against development banks accepted". Banktrack. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
- 1 2 3 Hase, Michael (16 December 2025). "Swiss Refinery's Supply Chain Shadows: MKS PAMP, Liberian Gold, and a Community's Fight for Clean Water". CareTaker News Now. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
- ↑ "How a gold mine has brought only misery in Liberia". www.thenewhumanitarian.org. 21 March 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
- ↑ Hase, Michael (16 December 2025). "Swiss Refinery's Supply Chain Shadows: MKS PAMP, Liberian Gold, and a Community's Fight for Clean Water". CareTaker News Now. Retrieved 20 December 2025.