The results of the annual Central Bank Gold Reserves Survey, conducted from early to mid-May 2026, were recently published by the World Gold Council. While little seems to have changed compared to the surveys of 2025 and 2024, there has been a significant shift compared to the previous decade. In recent years, central banks worldwide have increased their gold reserves on average at twice the annual rate of the 2010s. The central banks surveyed are also largely in agreement regarding future gold purchases.
Central banks expect further expansion of global gold reserves
Central banks are key drivers of overall gold demand, having accounted for roughly 20 percent of global gold purchases for the past several years. The trend is reflected in their reserve portfolios, with gold in US dollars overtaking US Treasuries, one of the most popular reserve assets, last September. Looking ahead to the next five years, 93 percent of the institutions surveyed are convinced that gold reserves will continue to increase, and 45 percent attest concrete plans to expand their own gold holding s – a new record.
Main drivers: hedge against geopolitical risks and portfolio diversification
90 percent of the central banks surveyed cited the protective function of gold amidst geopolitical crises as a crucial factor in their gold purchases, whilst 82 percent cited portfolio diversification as an important motivator in the further expansion of gold reserves. It comes as little surprise that a trend that has been developing for several years is proving persistent: 74 percent of respondents expect a moderate or even significant decline in the share of US dollars in foreign exchange reserves over the next five years. In 2024, that figure stood at 62 percent, and in 2022, at a significantly lower 42 percent.