This is the incredible moment a thrifty Thai farmer invested in gold - using coins he had been saving for 15 years.

Suripol Krainara, 60, unloaded thousands of 10 Baht coins - worth a total of 107,000 baht (2,400 GBP) - to buy two gold bars on April 23.

Staff were shocked as they helped him retrieve the dozens of coin-filled plastic bags from his pickup truck parked outside the Hang Thong Peerapong shop in Nakhon Si Thammarat, southern Thailand.

The frugal plantation owner said: 'I planned for a long time to buy gold with coins I saved, because gold is a long-term asset. I want to be an inspiration for the younger generation to learn how to save, whether it's a high or low amount. If you keep saving, you can accumulate a lot of money.

'People nowadays tend not to save because they want instant gratification. I want them to know that collecting money little by little, if done regularly, could turn into a large pile of cash.'

He attributed his discipline to being a former cyclist.

Suripol added: 'Success comes from determination and consistency, just like in sport.'

A shop clerk said they accepted all of the coins and painstakingly counted each one to ensure the amount was correct.

She said: 'We shared the heartwarming story on social media because it was the first time a customer had paid with such a large amount of coins. His discipline is impressive.'

After the transaction, a local bank representative arrived at the shop to collect the coins.

Gold demand has soared in recent years fueled by inflation, political instability and wars in the Middle East and Ukraine. The price has hit record highs with central governments - notably China and Russia - buying up large quantities of the precious metal as a hedge against the dollar and the power of the West.

Controversial banker JP Morgan famously said: 'Gold is money, everything else is credit.'

However, some investors remain cynical of the benefits of gold, which was dubbed the 'barbarous relic' by economist John Maynard Keynes, who believed it had limited uses.

Stock market doyen Warren Buffet is similarly dismissive of gold, which he does not hold in his investments.

He said: 'Gold gets dug out of the ground in Africa, or someplace. Then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again and pay people to stand around guarding it.'