Entrepreneur reveals how he turned his £20-a-day job and crypto crash into £4MILLION gold empire

Based in a Grade II listed mansion in Leatherhead, Surrey, the young entrepreneur's company employs 11 staff and is carving out a niche in Britain’s precious metals market.

Speaking to GB News, Mr Thorne broke down his business success, trading secrets, and the ever-changing tax regime British investors are forced to deal with.

During Mr Thorne’s childhood, his grandfather gave him one gold coin for every birthday. By the time he turned 21, the collection was worth enough to cash in for a £16,000 deposit on his first flat in Epsom.

The coins were not flashy. They were not speculative. They simply sat there quietly appreciating over time. Mr Thorne shared: "That was lesson one. Gold preserves wealth."

Lesson two arrived in the form of a £1,000 cheque. He invested it in cryptocurrency. He lost the lot. "At the time it felt devastating. But it taught me something priceless. Crypto can be up and down like a yo-yo. Gold behaves very differently."

In 2022, Thorne turned his attention to Hatton Garden, London’s historic jewellery quarter, trading gold through a director contact. He later took sole ownership of the business and rebranded it as Bullion Club.

The business model was focused on independently graded, sealed Royal Mint sovereigns and britannias, which are UK legal tender coins that are exempt from capital gains tax (CGT) for British investors.

Entry to this exclusive club starts at around £2,500, which is a a sum comparable to an ISA contribution, making it accessible to everyday investors who have saved a bit of their cash.

"I spent years watching people being pushed into products they didn’t fully understand. Bullion Club came from a simple idea: make it easier to own real, verifiable, high-quality gold in a way that’s clear and transparent. We focus on assets that stand on their own merit, not a sales story."

Following his previous financial loss, Mr Thorne remains cautious about cryptocurrency markets going forward and urges retail investors to exercise the same wariness.

"They can be highly fragmented and sentiment-driven. Price can be whipsawed by liquidations or thin liquidity. There’s also operational and counterparty risk that many people don’t fully understand."

Despite this warning, he notes gold is also not risk-free but is historically embedded as a store of value. The contrast between his grandfather’s birthday coins and the vanished £1,000 crypto cheque still shapes his philosophy.

"One sat quietly and helped me buy my first home. The other disappeared. That’s a powerful comparison." CGT exemption attached to UK legal-tender bullion coins is a meaningful draw for investors, particularly higher earners looking for tax-efficient exposure to gold. However, it is not the only factor.

"Clients like recognisability, liquidity and independent grading,” Thorne says. "They want clarity on what they’re buying. More people want tangible, understandable assets alongside traditional portfolios. And when clients understand the proposition, they refer others."

Amid growing geopolitical tensions and tariffs from the US, the price of gold and silver has skyrocketed over the past year. If markets stabilise, does gold’s appeal fade?

According to Mr Thorne, some "fear premium" might recede but he is confident a broader structural shift is underway. Record levels of gold demand in 2025 suggest the appetite is not purely headline-driven.

He added: "We’re seeing demand influenced by longer-term themes like diversification, confidence in fiat currencies, and institutional/central-bank interest, not just a single news cycle. Notably, 2025 saw record levels of gold demand and extensive new highs in the gold price."

For those considering trading, he states: "Start with clarity: are you investing for long-term preservation or trying to build a portfolio that can work alongside an ISA that is being hit by annual limits?

"Focus on finding a reputable company that has a strong track record. And if you’re unsure, get independent advice; nothing here is personal financial advice."