WGC Survey: Record 45% of Central Banks Plan to Increase Gold Holdings, 93% Already Hold Gold
Claire Weston
The World Gold Council's annual survey finds 45% of central banks plan to increase gold reserves in the next year while 93% already hold bullion — both record highs — signaling gold's shift from legacy asset to active strategic allocation.
45% adding, 93% holding — what do those numbers mean?
The survey covered 74 central banks. 45% expect to add gold in the next 12 months, 54% will hold steady, and just 1% plan to reduce.
This means → the global stance has flipped from "hold what we have" to "actively buy more." The sell side has virtually disappeared.
The share already holding gold jumped from 81% last year to 93%. In plain terms = nearly every central bank on earth now owns bullion; gold's penetration across the reserve system is accelerating.
Why are central banks buying gold?
A record 90% cited "performance during crises" as the top reason to hold gold, followed by portfolio diversification and inflation hedging.
Among emerging-market and developing economies (EMDEs), 85% ranked geopolitical-risk hedging as a key motive. This reflects a level of concern about sovereign-reserve safety far above that of advanced economies.
WGC head of global markets Shaokai Fan said central banks increasingly view gold as active strategic allocation, with geopolitical uncertainty as the core backdrop.
What happens to the dollar's share?
74% of respondents expect the dollar's share of global reserves to see a moderate or significant decline over the next five years.
Meanwhile, 84% believe gold's share will be moderately or significantly higher in five years — up from 76% in last year's survey.
This means → the reserve-structure shift central banks expect runs in two directions at once: the dollar gives up share, and gold fills the gap.
Where does the money to buy gold come from?
50% of central banks say they will acquire gold through domestic purchase programs funded in local currency. In plain terms = they buy on the home market with their own currency, no need to tap foreign-exchange reserves.
38% will fund purchases by selling existing reserve assets. This reflects a willingness to reallocate other holdings to make room for gold — not simply adding to the total.
Where is the gold stored — and why is that changing too?
The Bank of England remains the most popular storage venue (57%), followed by domestic vaults (49%) and the Bank for International Settlements (16%).
The Swiss National Bank's popularity dropped sharply, from 12% to 6%.
Over the past 12 months, 9% of central banks added domestic storage and 10% diversified overseas storage locations — up from 5% and 2% a year ago. This means → central banks are not only buying more gold but moving it to places they directly control. The drive for security now extends from *owning* bullion to *storing* it.
How far along is this structural reassessment?
Both the intent to buy and the share already holding have hit record highs simultaneously — the trend is still accelerating, not plateauing.
In plain terms = the "plan to buy" line and the "already own" line are both climbing at once. That pattern signals a structural shift, not a short-term sentiment swing.
The key follow-up: whether stated intent shows up in actual purchase data. The survey says "plan to buy"; the market needs to see "how much was actually bought."
Content is for reference only, not financial advice.