BullionVault 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app
By the Novaz team · Updated October 29, 2026
Novaz steps checked against version 1.0.5
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BullionVault is where people buy, sell and store gold, silver, platinum and palladium held in professional vaults. Two-factor authentication (2FA) is optional there. You can use an authenticator app, a YubiKey, or both, and if both are on, either one gets you in (BullionVault). The thing to know before you start: BullionVault doesn't give you backup codes. If you lose the app, the documented way back in is a password reset, which wipes 2FA from the account. This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone, but any authenticator app follows the same steps.
How we checked this guide: the BullionVault steps come from BullionVault's own help pages, linked below, which we read on October 21, 2026. We haven't tested them on a BullionVault account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.
Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app
BullionVault's help page describes these steps (BullionVault):
- Log in to your BullionVault account.
- Go to ACCOUNT > Settings.
- Find Security Options and the line for App two-factor authentication, then press Edit.
- BullionVault shows a QR code. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at it. If the QR code is on the same iPhone, take a screenshot, tap +, then Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
- Novaz now shows a code for BullionVault. Type it on the BullionVault page and submit it. That switches 2FA on.
The help page only mentions the QR code. It doesn't say whether BullionVault also shows a text key you can type, or how many digits its codes have. If a key is offered, you can add it in Novaz with +, then Enter key manually, and paste it into Setup key (What is a 2FA setup key?). Scanning is still the better choice, because the QR code carries the code settings with it.
A YubiKey is set up the same way, from the YubiKey two-factor authentication line in Security Options.
No backup codes
BullionVault's help doesn't offer recovery codes. Instead, it suggests you look at the backup options in your authenticator app, or set the app up on more than one device (BullionVault).
With Novaz, that advice fits: turn on iCloud backup or use Export to file… under Settings > Backup. You can also:
- Add a YubiKey as a second method, since either one works at sign-in.
- Add BullionVault to a second authenticator app on another device when you first scan the QR code, if you're comfortable having the key in two places.
- Make sure you can always get into the email address on your BullionVault account. That's what the reset route depends on.
More on how other services handle this in 2FA backup codes.
When BullionVault asks for a code
After 2FA is on, every sign-in asks for your username and password and then a code from the app. Each code only works for a short time, so open Novaz and type the one it shows right now (BullionVault).
One exception: if you sign in to the BullionVault mobile app with biometrics, the help page says you won't need to type passwords or other security details. The code is for sign-ins where you type your username and password.
If BullionVault rejects your code
BullionVault's help doesn't cover rejected codes. Most of the time the iPhone's clock is off. Open Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Automatically. Novaz also warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. Other causes are in Authenticator code not working?
If you've been barred from logging in, BullionVault asks you to contact it for help.
If you lose your authenticator
BullionVault's answer is to reset your password, which is also the only documented way to turn 2FA off. The reset page says that a reset clears 2FA from the account, so you'll need to add it again afterwards (BullionVault). To start, enter your Username on that page and choose Request password reset.
What BullionVault asks for along the way (BullionVault):
- access to the email address you registered the account with. If you've lost that too, the page says to phone the UK office during its office hours;
- if you've already funded or traded the account, details about your account activity, which you may find on your statements or contract notes.
BullionVault only lets you set a new password once it's satisfied the account is yours. It doesn't say how long that takes. Once you're back in, go to ACCOUNT > Settings and set the authenticator up again. For general steps, see Lost the phone with your authenticator app?
Changing phones
BullionVault doesn't describe how to move the authenticator to a new phone, With a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file, you restore your accounts on the new iPhone; without one, the new phone needs a fresh setup. Keep the old phone until BullionVault is working on the new one. The help page doesn't say whether pressing Edit again replaces an existing setup. If you can't add the new phone while signed in, or the old phone is already gone, the password reset above clears 2FA so you can start over. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
