(27 August 2025 – Global) For the first time in three decades foreign central banks officially hold more gold than US Treasuries.
The shift in reserve strategy signals a critical change in FX holdings as gold (20 percent) surpasses the Euro (16 percent) to become the second most important reserve asset after the greenback (46 percent).
China recently increased its gold reserves in July for the ninth month in a row, while the country’s foreign exchange reserves fell due to the appreciation of the US dollar.
According to the World Gold Council (WGC), global central banks amassed 1082 tonnes of gold in 2022, 1037 tonnes in 2023 and a record 1180 tonnes in 2024, marking an enormous increase from the average 500 tonnes of gold obtained during the 2010s. Central banks officially hold 36,344 tonnes of gold as of Q2 2025. 43 percent of central bankers plan to increase their gold reserves over the next 12 months according to the WGC.
The IMF has warned that although the US Dollar firmly remains the most widely used reserve currency in the world at this time, its influence is slowly diminishing.
“This is likely the beginning of one of the most significant global rebalancing’s we’ve experienced in recent history” commented Crescat Capital Macro Strategist, Tavi Costa.
“The main de-dollarization trend in FX reserves pertains to the growing demand for gold. This increased demand has in turn partly driven the current bull market in gold, with prices forecast to climb toward $4,000/oz by mid-2026” JPMorgan stated in a recent research note.