Illegal mining with its related symptoms of ecological, social and economic impacts amongst others continues to be a challenge in many areas of South America…Governments in Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia or Chile have started some years ago to take measures, implement formalization process’s and crack down on illegal mining in order to tackle this historical problem. Despite these ongoing efforts, results are still modest…Peru however took the decision in 2014 to push the process further. In order to encourage the formalization process of concerned artisanal and small scale gold miners, the government of Peru, through the government controlled company, Activos Mineros SAC, launched Public Tenders to selected trading companies (“comercializadoras”) in the different mining regions of the country. The selected trading companies would in turn commit to offer favorable and fair terms to the artisanal and small scale miners already in the process of formalization. By offering limited discounts versus the international gold price, such local mining communities would be able to receive competitive returns in comparison to the ones offered by illegal traders, while continuing to push forward their formalization and improvement processes...