Two centuries ago, assayer Percival Norton Johnson, who trained under his father, decided to establish his own precious metal company. He opened his door as an assayer in 1817, testing the purity of gold and other precious metals. Over the years, Johnson Matthey has established itself as a leader in the global precious metals industry, producing and refining gold, silver, platinum, and palladium for centuries. Despite their success in the precious metal industry, Johnson Matthey liquidated and sold their precious metals division in 2015. Why did Johnson Matthey sell one of their core competencies that took it from humble beginnings to the international powerhouse it's known as now?

Conception and Humble Beginnings 

Founded in 1817 by Percival Norton Johnson, the company initially operated as a gold assayer and refinery. George Matthey later joined in 1851, and the company officially became a partnership, updating its name to Johnson & Matthey, where it expanded and widened its scope of work to include refining for silver, platinum, and palladium. The next year, Johnson & Matthey was appointed as official assayers and refiners to the Bank of England, further cementing their reputation as a renowned precious metal company. Ever since the London Gold Market was formed in 1919, Johnson Matthey has been a member overseeing the operation of gold trading in London. 

Expanding Beyond Bullion 

Interested in expanding its company beyond the bullion sphere, Johnson Matthey invested its time and money in its subsidiary, Johnson Matthey Bankers, a bank dedicated to high-risk loans. Although Johnson Matthey Bankers hoped for a high-risk, high-return situation, it turned out that many lenders defaulted on millions of dollars worth of loans, to the point where Johnson Matthey Bankers loaned out more money than they were worth. The Bank of England had to save the company from bankruptcy to prevent mass panic and purchased Johnson Matthey Bankers for one Euro. 

After their fiasco in banking, Johnson Matthey sought to diversify their direction and began acquiring different technological companies to expand internationally. They acquired Argillion, a German catalyst manufacturer specializing in ceramics used to control emissions, in 2008. In the following decade, Johnson Matthey would acquire suppliers for catalytic cracking additives, build an emissions catalyst manufacturing plant in 2009, and acquire a metal foil catalyst company for hydrogen and syngas production. The frequent acquisitions of companies outside the bullion sphere indicated Johnson Matthey’s change in strategy and direction moving forward. All the mergers happening pointed Johnson Matthey’s direction as a future powerhouse in catalyst and catalytic technology. 

Closing Down

In 2015, Johnson Matthey announced that it was ceasing operations in the refining industry and had sold their gold and silver refining branches located in Brampton, Ontario and Salt Lake City, Utah, to Asahi holdings for $184 million in cash. The CEO at the time, Robert MacLeod, cited that the divestment from gold and silver refining was in line with their long-term strategy to pivot and use their expertise in chemistry to develop high-tech solutions in transport, fuel cells, PGMs, and life science technologies. Gold and silver prices in 2015 seemed unpromising, and the refining division provided few synergies with the rest of the company’s expertise. At this point, Johnson Matthey did not see itself as a precious metal company, instead citing its focus on advanced technology, shifting focus away from precious metals. Asahi Refining, the purchaser of their precious metal facilities, commented that the newly acquired assets will be compatible with its current operations. At the time, Asahi was operating in Japan as a precious metal refinery and metal recycling firm. Poised to expand their geographical reach, they expanded into the North American market with the acquisition of Johnson Matthey’s refining division.  

Current 

Currently, Johnson Matthey is an advanced chemicals company with a focus on technological solutions to aid chemical, energy, and automotive companies in decarbonizing and reducing harmful emissions. It has shifted its expertise and technology to enable energy, chemicals and automotive companies to decarbonize and reduce harmful emissions. Although Johnson Matthey Mint is now defunct, you can still find their bars in circulation. With over 100 years of history in the precious metal industry, the bars are now considered a rare vintage find and sell at a high premium. Johnson Matthey bars command a high premium as a result of a few factors: all of the bars minted by Johnson Matthey are pure silver and gold, a scarcity mindset, and their brand name. Johnson Matthey was one of the highest purity and best-selling metals in the market when their gold and silver refining operations were at their peak. Paired with the nostalgia, the vintage appeal, and scarcity of the bars since Johnson Matthey has now become defunct, the bars now command a high premium and are in high demand. Their recognizable logo and previous status as the leader in the precious metal industry add to the collectability and appeal of Johnson Matthey bars.