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About the 1 oz Asahi Refining Lunar Silver Round
Asahi Refining's Lunar Calendar Series
The 1 oz Asahi Lunar silver round is part of a zodiac-themed series launched in August 2023 with the Year of the Dragon design. Asahi Refining has described it as "the first in what will be an ongoing series of gold and silver bullion celebrating the Chinese Lunar New Year," following the 12-year Chinese zodiac cycle. Two animals have been released so far: the Dragon (2024) and the Snake (2025). If the series continues through the full cycle, it will run until 2035.
Asahi Refining brings LBMA Good Delivery credentials to the lunar bullion category. The company was formed in 2015 when Asahi Holdings of Japan acquired Johnson Matthey's gold and silver refining businesses for $186 million, inheriting JM's accreditation and nearly two centuries of institutional history. Asahi operates refineries in Salt Lake City, Brampton (Ontario), and a minting facility in Miami, all under ISO 9001:2015 certification. These are not the marks of a novelty mint producing seasonal curiosities; the institutional backing is genuine.
The series is available in both round and bar formats in silver, plus gold bars. All silver products are .999 fine and weigh one troy ounce. The dual-format approach gives buyers a choice that most competing lunar series do not offer at the same price point. The round and bar share the same reverse design for each zodiac year but differ in shape and obverse layout.
The Asahi Lunar series sits in a specific niche: zodiac-themed bullion from an LBMA refiner at premiums below the Perth Mint's long-established Lunar series. Buyers who want the cultural theme without paying Perth Mint premiums or government-coin markups have relatively few options, and the Asahi series fills that gap.
Asahi Lunar Silver Round Specifications
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 1 troy ounce (31.1 g) |
| Purity | .999 fine silver |
| Diameter | 39 mm |
| Thickness | 2.5 mm |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Face value | None (not legal tender) |
| Mint mark | Asahi Refining logo (debossed on obverse) |
Design Details by Year
The obverse is shared across all products in the series: a debossed Asahi Refining logo on a reverse-proof finished background, with inscriptions reading "1 OUNCE TROY," "LUNAR CALENDAR SERIES," and "FINE SILVER .999." The reverse changes annually with each zodiac animal.
The 2024 Dragon reverse shows a dragon entwined around a Cypress Tree, symbolising the Wood element of that year's zodiac cycle, with associations of growth and prosperity. The 2025 Snake reverse features a snake hanging from a tree branch, accented with plum blossoms and lanterns representing good fortune. Each design reflects the specific elemental and symbolic associations of its zodiac year rather than presenting a generic animal portrait.
Tax Treatment of the Asahi Lunar Silver Round
The Asahi Lunar round is a privately minted product with no legal tender status. Its tax treatment is identical to any other .999 silver bar or round in every jurisdiction.
United States
The round meets the .999 silver purity requirement for IRA eligibility under IRS Section 408(m), and Asahi's LBMA accreditation strengthens the case with custodians who require products from recognised refiners. State sales tax varies widely: most states exempt bullion, but exceptions exist. Capital gains are taxed at the collectibles rate of up to 28%.
United Kingdom
Silver rounds carry 20% VAT on purchase. On sale, CGT applies at 18% or 24% with a £3,000 annual allowance. No CGT exemption is available for privately minted silver products.
Canada
GST/HST exempt since the round exceeds the 99.9% purity threshold. Asahi manufactures in Brampton, Ontario, making this a domestically produced product for Canadian buyers. Capital gains follow the standard 50% inclusion rate.
Australia and New Zealand
GST-free in Australia at 99.9% purity. GST-exempt in New Zealand at the same threshold. Both countries apply their standard capital gains frameworks (CGT with 50% discount after 12 months in Australia; no formal CGT in New Zealand).
Singapore and Hong Kong
Singapore exempts qualifying Investment Precious Metals from its 9% GST. Hong Kong imposes no sales tax, import duty, or capital gains tax on silver bullion. Both jurisdictions are favourable for lunar-themed bullion, given the cultural significance of the Chinese zodiac in the region.
Asahi Lunar vs Perth Mint Lunar and Other Zodiac Bullion
The Perth Mint's Lunar series is the benchmark in zodiac-themed bullion. Now in its third generation (Series III, launched 2020), the Perth Mint Lunar is a government-backed coin programme with legal tender status, over 25 years of history, and strong collector demand that sustains secondary market premiums. The Asahi Lunar series does not compete with the Perth Mint on those terms. Instead, it offers the same zodiac theme from an LBMA-accredited refiner at a substantially lower premium, trading government backing for cost efficiency.
The Royal Canadian Mint also produces Chinese zodiac-themed bullion with legal tender status and competitive premiums. For buyers who want a sovereign-minted lunar coin, the RCM's offerings sit between the Perth Mint's premium pricing and the Asahi round's lower entry point.
PAMP Suisse produces lunar zodiac bars in gold and silver. The PAMP brand commands higher premiums than Asahi due to Swiss refiner prestige and the Fortuna design heritage. For buyers focused purely on the zodiac theme and metal content rather than brand cachet, the Asahi round offers better value per ounce of silver.
Against non-themed rounds at the same weight, such as the 1 oz Asahi Buffalo from the same refiner, the Lunar round typically carries a slight design premium. Buyers choosing between them are deciding whether the annual zodiac design justifies a small additional cost over the standard Buffalo motif. For long-term stackers, the Buffalo's timeless design may be more practical; for buyers who value variety and cultural significance, the Lunar series adds a collecting dimension that plain generic rounds lack.
The series is still young, with only two of twelve zodiac animals released so far. Collectors who begin now have the opportunity to build a complete set from the first issue onward, which could carry a modest completeness premium on the secondary market if the series continues through the full cycle.
1 oz Asahi Refining Lunar Silver Round: frequently asked questions
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The cheapest 1oz Asahi Lunar silver round tracked on this page is $69.94. That price reflects $65.79 silver spot plus dealer premium. Silver rounds trade close to spot, so the day's silver price is the primary driver of what you pay.
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Across the 3 dealers we track, the lowest premium on a 1oz Asahi Lunar round is currently 6.7% over spot, available from Monument Metals. Premiums on private-mint silver rounds vary with demand and stock levels, so comparing dealers before buying is worthwhile.
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Asahi Refining is an LBMA Good Delivery refiner with facilities in Salt Lake City, Brampton (Canada), and Miami. It was formed in 2015 when Asahi Holdings acquired Johnson Matthey's gold and silver refining businesses. The Lunar rounds are struck to .999 fine silver, meeting the standard investment-grade purity threshold used by most retirement account custodians.
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Asahi Refining operates refineries in Salt Lake City (Utah), Miami (Florida), and Brampton (Ontario, Canada). It is the North American precious metals refining arm of Tokyo-based Asahi Holdings, which acquired Johnson Matthey's refining operations in 2015. The Silver Lunar rounds are a North American product; the Asahi brand is unrelated to the Japanese brewing company of a similar name.
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The Asahi Lunar series follows the 12-year Chinese zodiac cycle, with the reverse design changing each year to depict the current zodiac animal. The series launched in 2023 with the 2024 Dragon release, followed by the 2025 Snake. The obverse carries the Asahi logo and purity markings and stays constant. For resale, the metal content drives value rather than the specific year's design.