I am auditing a super fund and the SMSF owns gold and silver bars. The client has said that they store it at home and that they are able to do this as it is stored securely, insured and not available for private use. These are bars so I don't believe they are considered a collectible. However, how do you prove that it is stored in a secure location? The only proof of ownership we were given is a photo of the gold and silver bars. I didn't think this would be enough to prove continuous ownership or that they are stored in a secure location. Would at statutory declaration or minutes signed by the trustee/s be enough to satisfy this requirement? I would have thought that the bars would need to be held in a vault and a certificate of ownership would need to be provided.

Also, if a signed minute isn't enough proof, is not holding gold and silver bars in a vault enough to contravene a fund?