This website provides a range of information on the gold reserves held by central banks and official institutions throughout the world, including the historical background to gold as a monetary asset and an explanation of why gold is held as a reserve asset.

Background and history

Why central banks hold gold

Central bank agreements on gold

European monetary union and gold

Monetary history of gold

 

Statistics

A range of statistical data on official gold reserves is available from our Research and Statistics website, including the following:

World official gold holdings – to December 2009
World Gold Holdings – volume and value
Changes in official reserves statistics
Major changes in official reserves statistics 1990-2007
Latest statistics on sales under the Central Bank Agreements on Gold
Official reserves 1948-2007
Historical data

 

Research

In addition to the papers below that are particularly relevant to gold’s role as a reserve asset, an extensive range of research regarding gold’s investment characteristics is available from our Research and Statistics website.

Structural Change in Reserve Asset Management by Natalie Dempster

Central Bank Gold Reserves: An historical perspective since 1845 by Timothy Green

Gold as a Hedge against the US Dollar by Forrest Capie, Terence C Mills and Geoffrey Wood

Should Gold Exporters peg their Currencies to Gold? By Jeffrey Frankel

The IMF and Gold (Revised Edition) by Dick Ware

Gold as a Store of Value by Stephen Harmston

 

Case Studies

Central Bank Case Study: Austria

Central Bank Case Study: The Philippines

Central Bank Case Study: Switzerland