The European Central Bank said on 2 June 2026 that gold's share of total official foreign reserves rose to 27% at the end of 2025, surpassing both US Treasuries at 22% and the euro at 15%, in its annual report on the international role of the euro.
The ECB said the development largely reflected valuation effects. The gold price rose by around 60% in 2025 and 30% in 2024, which mechanically increases gold's share of reserves. Using end-2023 gold prices, gold's share would be 16%, level with the euro, while US Treasuries would remain markedly higher at 26%, according to the report.
CENTRAL BANK BUYING
Central bank gold purchases eased to around 850 tonnes in 2025 from more than 1,000 tonnes a year between 2022 and 2024, partly reflecting historically high prices and strong private investor demand, but remained elevated, the ECB said. Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, China has bought more than 350 tonnes of gold, followed by Poland with 320 tonnes, Türkiye with 220 tonnes and India with 130 tonnes. Poland was the largest official-sector buyer in 2025, at around 100 tonnes, followed by Kazakhstan, Brazil, China and Türkiye.
Survey data suggest central banks hold gold for diversification and as a hedge against geopolitical risk, and those with larger purchases tend to be located in regions with higher external conflict risk, the report said. After the outbreak of war in the Middle East, some central banks sold gold and US Treasuries to support their economies and currencies, with the Turkish central bank selling or lending out about 130 tonnes of gold.
LIMITS AS A RESERVE ASSET
The ECB said gold faces limitations as an official reserve asset compared with the major fiat currencies: its price is volatile, it is not remunerated and it is costly to store in physical form. It added that the supply of gold is not fully elastic and does not adjust seamlessly to shifts in international demand for liquidity.