The owner of Sheffield’s gold trading cafe might go to jail soon. He doesn’t seem to mind

Ricky Chu, founder of Sheffield’s XAU USD gold trading café, is due to be sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on 14 December for possessing a class B drug with intent to supply. The offence carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison, an unlimited fine, or both; Chu says he is accepting the possibility of prison, while his co-owner plans to keep the café running.

XAU USD combines a café with a space where customers can discuss trading gold, whose price is displayed in real time. Chu says he began trading in February and claims he can already earn enough to live on, though estimates suggest only 10–15% of retail day traders make a profit in their first year. His legal case stems from a previous coffee shop, which sold products infused with CBD.