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Modern Texas\u00a0Redback Gold Notes are being produced and sold by the Texas Bullion Depository. A lawsuit in federal court in Austin argues the state is moving to produce its own illegal currency. The original \u201credbacks\u201d were promissory notes issued by\u00a0the Republic of\u00a0Texas between 1839 and 1840, so-called because of\u00a0the red star on\u00a0their reverse.<\/p>\n
Comptroller of the State of Texas<\/p>\n
A new Texas law to launch a gold-backed system of spending<\/a> could complicate the state\u2019s defense in a lawsuit over minting its own currency.<\/p>\n Though officials say the state is merely making collectible coins and notes, a gold-buying expert and Shiner-based business<\/a> owner says Texas is gearing up to create its own money.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Tarek Saab, CEO of Texas Precious Metals\u00a0LLC, sued Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock<\/a> and the Texas Bullion Depository over a collectible coin and note program he says directly competes with private business. The program was launched last year under a 2019 law that allowed the sale of promotional items.\u00a0<\/p>\n In an interview ahead of a Thursday federal court hearing, Saab alleged that effort, paired with a 2025 law that recognizes silver and gold as legal tender in Texas, is part of a bigger plan.<\/p>\n \u201cIf gold and silver are legal tender and a state institution is issuing coins, struck by the state of Texas, made from gold and silver, then the logic follows that what they\u2019re doing or what they\u2019re trying to do is issue money,\u201d he said of the state.<\/p>\n Lawsuit challenges state coin program<\/p>\n The Texas Bullion Depository was created by the Legislature \u201cto do one thing and one thing only\u00a0\u2014 store precious metals such as gold and silver,\u201d Saab said. Instead, it is acting like a commercial mint in competition with his business and others like it, using deceptive marketing, creating brand confusion and infringing on his company\u2019s trademark.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n House Bill 1056 created the new law\u00a0\u2014 sometimes described as a transactional gold law\u00a0\u2014 that invites Texans to create their own accounts of gold and silver in the depository and spend those holdings with a debit card.<\/p>\n Saab said that bolsters his argument the state is moving toward making its own legal tender.<\/p>\n Hancock\u2019s office did not respond to a request for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Gold as legal tender<\/p>\n Over the past decade,\u00a0Texas officials have become increasingly interested in gold. Legislation authorizing the\u00a0Texas Bullion Depository in 2015<\/a> aimed to \u201crepatriate\u201d the state\u2019s investments in gold, in part to save fees for storing it elsewhere but also asserting the state\u2019s financial sovereignty.\u00a0<\/p>\n Then, last year, Texas took a step forward with HB 1056.<\/p>\n Rather than dropping off your gold at\u00a0H-E-B in exchange for a six pack of Shiner, the bill\u2019s yet-to-be-designed system would allow digital spending at current market rates for gold and silver. The state would administer the program and take a fee. Beyond keeping more gold in the state, it creates a revenue stream for the Leander-based\u00a0depository, which legislators apparently think hasn\u2019t been doing much.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cThe bill author has informed the committee that the Texas Bullion Depository has been largely underutilized,\u201d a House subcommittee said in its analysis of the bill.\u00a0<\/p>\n San Antonio Republican Rep. Mark\u00a0Dorazio wrote the bill, which originally envisioned a more expansive and full-fledged gold-and-silver-based monetary system.\u00a0Mineola Republican Sen. Bryan Hughes authored\u00a0the Senate version, which was closer to what became law<\/a>.<\/p>\n Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock, seen here in September in San Antonio, launched Texas Lone Star Coins and Texas\u00a0Redback Gold Notes, which are designed as authorized commemorative precious metal products through the Texas Bullion Depository.<\/p>\n Brenda Bazan\/San Antonio Express-News contributor<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t a new idea; it has been supported in the past by several House and Senate members, including Comptroller Hancock when he was still a state senator representing Tarrant and Dallas counties. He became acting comptroller in late 2025.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Gov. Greg Abbott put it this way on social media after making it official last June: \u201cI signed a law authorizing Texans to use gold & silver as legal tender in day-to-day financial transactions.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The new law fits with arguments made over the past two decades by advocates of currency backed by gold and silver and aligned with secessionist movements fueled by distrust of the Federal Reserve. Ownership of precious metals by individuals also has grown in popularity as inflationary spikes have occurred, eroding the value of the dollar.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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