Bankers' "Forced" Gold Buying Story: From Draining Their Savings in the Past to Celebrating Unexpected Wealth as Gold Prices Rise Today

Working at a bank, it may seem like holding a “golden rice bowl” on the surface, but behind the scenes there are unknown pressures, with sales targets for precious metals being one of them. At the end of each quarter or year, sales tasks for gold bars, gold notes, gold jewelry, and other precious metals arrive as scheduled, evenly distributed among every bank employee, causing quite a bit of trouble for many.

Some bank employees have shared their experiences online, saying that a few years ago, due to the difficulty of completing sales targets for precious metals, they had to buy them with their own salaries each time. Back then, gold prices were only three or four hundred yuan per gram. Over the years, not only did their salaries go into buying gold, but they also invested their parents’ money. Unexpectedly, by the end of 2025, gold prices rose to over a thousand yuan per gram. After cashing out the purchased precious metals, they had enough to pay for their house’s down payment and renovation costs—truly a case of “unexpected gains from a misstep.”

36-year-old Chen Mo, a wealth management manager at a Gansu bank, has faced various tasks since he started working. The end-of-year promotion of precious metals is the most headache-inducing. Gold bars are manageable, but craft gold items like gold Pixiu and zodiac animals are difficult to sell because of low gold prices and high craftsmanship fees. Their price per gram is even higher than well-known brands on the market. Even with an 80% discount, he would still lose money if he sold them. His supervisors kept pressuring him, saying that if he couldn’t find clients, he should just absorb the inventory himself as a form of savings. To keep his job, he has repeatedly used his year-end salary and bonuses over the years to buy these craft gold items. His mother comforted him, saying that if he couldn’t sell them, he could just keep them for future wedding gifts or as hardware for his wife. Unexpectedly, in August 2023, when he got married, gold prices had risen to 590 yuan per gram. He and his wife remelted the Pixiu and zodiac gold into new jewelry, which not only didn’t lose money but also earned a small profit. After marriage, they believed gold prices would continue to rise, so they used the bride price money to buy some gold bars for savings. Last year, at the end of the year, they sold the remaining gold bars and craft gold, used the proceeds to buy a school district house for their child, and made quite a bit of money—much more reliable than fixed deposits or stock trading.

28-year-old Lin Wei, a teller at a joint-stock bank, started her career in 2020, during the peak period of heavy precious metals sales targets. The branch manager allocated KPIs to each person, requiring each to sell at least 1 gram of gold weekly; if not, they had to buy it themselves. Gold could be sold, but the transaction fees would cost a few yuan each time. As a newcomer with no client resources, most customers coming to the branch were for basic banking needs, and no one listened to her recommendations about gold bars. To meet her targets, she spent about a third of her monthly salary on gold each month, and this continued until 2024. At that point, gold prices started soaring, and customers began asking proactively, making it easy to meet her sales goals. Last year, she had a baby, and during late pregnancy, gold prices exceeded 1000 yuan per gram. She calculated that her gold savings had appreciated significantly and decided to sell and book a maternity center. When the branch leaders “consoled” her with sarcastic remarks, she simply responded that it was the money earned from completing her sales targets by selling precious metals. Later, during a morning meeting, the leaders even asked everyone to learn from her, which made her laugh and cry.

41-year-old Wu Feng, a corporate client manager at a top four bank, mainly handles corporate clients, but in recent years, he was also assigned precious metals sales targets, mainly promoting the “Accumulation Gold” business—where clients make fixed monthly deductions to buy gold, similar to a regular investment plan. Each corporate client manager has an account opening target, and with new business difficult to push, he not only opened accounts for himself with a monthly deduction of 2000 yuan but also encouraged his wife, parents, and in-laws to open accounts, claiming it was just helping him complete his targets and also a form of savings. He persisted with this for over ten years. During this period, gold prices fluctuated; at the lowest point at the end of 2015, it dropped to around 220 yuan per gram. His mother once wanted to stop, but he persuaded her to keep going. In 2025, his daughter was set to study abroad, with high expenses. He remembered the accumulation gold accounts and checked—finding that six accounts held over a thousand kilograms of accumulated gold, worth over 1 million yuan. After selling in batches, he not only covered all his daughter’s study abroad expenses but also had surplus funds. He reflected that the persistence in accumulating gold to meet sales targets had become the most substantial savings for his family.

35-year-old Zhao Wei, a wealth management manager at a top four bank, has a deep impression of the gold note sales targets, calling them a nightmare for every banker. He started dealing with gold notes in 2015, the Year of the Sheep, when 1 gram sold for over 400 yuan. The branch’s minimum sales target was 22 sets per person, which he could only achieve by aggressively finding acquaintances, often losing about 100 yuan per set. Moreover, the weight of gold notes kept decreasing: after 2015, the Year of the Monkey and the Year of the Pig both had 1-gram notes; the Year of the Ox and Dragon had 0.8 grams; this year’s Year of the Horse has 0.5 grams. When first launched, they were priced at over 800 yuan, but even then, they were still much more expensive than gold prices. Interestingly, the lighter the gold notes, the easier it was to complete the sales targets. He has an old client who has been buying every year since the Year of the Sheep. This year, he said the Year of the Horse gold note was 0.5 grams. Although the client sighed, he still bought it and joked that next year, if it’s only 0.3 grams, he won’t bother to buy in full sets. Now that gold prices have risen, clients who bought gold notes in earlier years have come to thank him. One lady bought a Year of the Sheep gold note in 2015; she thought it was expensive then, but now, when she calculates, she realizes she didn’t lose money.

The precious metals sales tasks in banks act like a chain of pressure transmission—from the head office to branches, and finally to the frontline employees. With limited customer resources, many employees can only buy precious metals themselves to meet their targets. However, when gold prices rise, these once “burdens” turn into “reserves” that help employees get through life’s critical moments—some paid their house down payments, some enjoyed maternity services, and some saved enough for their children’s study abroad expenses. When asked what they would do if there are more targets next year, most bank employees almost unanimously say “still have to buy if needed.” This seemingly resigned attitude actually reflects the most straightforward understanding of gold among frontline financial workers—it’s more tangible than many financial products.