Over the past year, we reported several brazen, and very significant, gold thefts, usually occurring in broad daylight, among which"



None of these however compare to what Security logistics and precious metals vaulting company Brinks reported after hours, when it announced that it would incur an $11 million charge as a result of a theft of an international gold shipment in December.

Brinks adds that the robbery occurred on December 6 and remains under investigation. While there was little additional disclosed, Brinks said that the customer affected by the theft has been fully reimbursed by Brink’s and added that "if the gold is recovered, or if any portion of Brink’s monetary loss is subrogated to third parties prior to the filing of the company’s Form 10-K, the recovery value will be reflected in 2017 results."

And while we certainly would like to learn more about this particular heist, the company said that due to the ongoing investigation and related security protocols, Brink’s does not intend to make additional comments regarding the robbery at this time.

The good news is that despite the $11MM charge, Brinks won't suffer too much, and BKS reported that the company’s 2017 non-GAAP operating profit is expected to be approximately $280 million, an increase of 30% over 2016, if at the low end of its prior guidance range of $280 million to $290 million.

To think of all the unpleasantries could have been avoided if the shipper had sold the physical gold, bought some cryptos, sent the cryptos anywhere in the world instantly, then used it to purchase the same amount of gold.

Finally putting the mysterious theft in context, based on a recent summary of the notable gold robberies, the $11 million value of the stolen shipment would place it as the 12th biggest gold heist in history.