Central bank gold buying is reported in tonnes, quarter by quarter, and the headline numbers travel widely. This piece sets out how much central banks have bought, which banks bought it, the reasons they give, and what the published totals do and do not include. It does not discuss prices or forecasts, and it does not tell you what to buy.
How much gold have central banks bought in recent years?
More than 1,000 tonnes a year in 2022, 2023 and 2024, and 863.3 tonnes in 2025, according to the World Gold Council. Its 2010 to 2021 annual average was 473 tonnes. These totals include the Council's estimate of buying that central banks have not reported.
The figures below all come from one report edition, the World Gold Council's Gold Demand Trends Full Year 2025, published after the end of 2025. Central banks have been net buyers on an annual basis since 2010.
| Period | Central bank net purchases (tonnes) |
|---|---|
| 2010–2021 annual average | 473 |
| 2022 | More than 1,000 (exact figure not given in this edition) |
| 2023 | More than 1,000 (exact figure not given in this edition) |
| 2024 | 1,092.4 |
| 2025 | 863.3 |
Sources: World Gold Council, Gold Demand Trends Full Year 2025, Central banks. Totals include the World Gold Council's estimate of unreported buying.
Buying in 2026 has been uneven. The World Gold Council's Gold Demand Trends Q2 2026 puts second-quarter net purchases at 289 tonnes, against a revised 57 tonnes in the first quarter. First-half demand of 345 tonnes was the lowest for a first half since 2022. These quarterly figures also include the estimate of unreported buying.
Why do the totals include estimates?
Because many central banks buy without announcing it. The World Gold Council's quarterly totals combine reported changes with an estimate of unreported buying, and in 2025 the unreported part was 57% of the annual total.
The Full Year 2025 report states that its central bank demand “comprises aggregate reported changes as well as an estimate for unreported buying,” and that this differs from its monthly statistics, “which consist solely of publicly reported changes.” It describes the gap between Metals Focus estimates and officially reported data as “substantial opaque activity (57% of the annual total).”
The two series can give very different numbers. For August 2026, the World Gold Council's monthly statistics show reported net buying of 39 tonnes. Before comparing a monthly figure, check whether it is reported-only or includes the World Gold Council’s estimate of unreported buying.
The estimates are also revised. In its Full Year 2024 report, the World Gold Council put 2024 central bank buying at 1,044.6 tonnes. A year later, the Full Year 2025 report gave 1,092.4 tonnes for the same year. Figures from different editions should not be mixed in one comparison.
Which central banks are buying gold, and which are selling?
Poland was the largest reported buyer in 2024, 2025 and the first half of 2026, according to the World Gold Council. Turkey, Russia and Azerbaijan's state oil fund sold heavily early in 2026.
From the Full Year 2025 report, based on reported data: the National Bank of Poland was the largest buyer for the second year running, adding 102 tonnes in 2025 and bringing its reserves to 550 tonnes. The National Bank of Kazakhstan added 57 tonnes, its highest annual buying in records going back to 1993. The Central Bank of Brazil “re-entered the market in 2025, having last bought gold in 2021,” adding 43 tonnes between September and November. The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan, which the report calls “the only sovereign wealth fund to publicly disclose its gold holdings,” acquired 38 tonnes between the first and third quarters. The People's Bank of China added 27 tonnes, taking its reported reserves to 2,306 tonnes. The Central Bank of Turkey bought 27 tonnes, based on data to the end of October. The Czech National Bank bought 20 tonnes in 2025, “a similar level to the preceding three years.”
In 2026, the Q2 report describes “hefty Q1 selling by Turkey, Russia and Azerbaijan,” meaning the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan. Russia was the largest seller in the second quarter, reducing its holdings by 22 tonnes. Second-quarter purchases listed in the same report include the National Bank of Poland at 51 tonnes, the People's Bank of China at 33 tonnes, the Central Bank of Uzbekistan at 16 tonnes, the National Bank of Kazakhstan at 15 tonnes and the Czech National Bank at 6 tonnes. By August, the World Gold Council's monthly statistics show Poland at 98 tonnes bought for the year and 648 tonnes held, and China in its 22nd consecutive month of reported buying, with about 2,387 tonnes.
Some buyers were once sellers. The Czech National Bank states that, following “a Bank Board decision to sell the bulk of the gold after 1998, 14 tonnes remained in the CNB’s vaults,” and that it “began purchasing gold more actively in 2023, and has since been gradually rebuilding the nation’s gold reserves.”
Large holders publish their own figures too. The Reserve Bank of India reports that at the end of March 2026 it held 880.52 metric tonnes of gold, of which 680.05 tonnes were held domestically.
What reasons do central banks give for buying gold?
Gold's performance in crises, diversification, inflation hedging and protection against geopolitical risk are among the key reasons central banks give in the World Gold Council's 2026 survey. Individual banks also state their own reasons.
The Czech National Bank explains its buying on its own website: “Gold in the reserves is used not only as an important diversification tool, but also for the production of commemorative coins. It also holds symbolic value.” It also states that “if the central bank holds around 100 tonnes of gold in its international reserves, the volatility of its financial results will decrease.” It held 87.4 tonnes at the end of September 2026 and aims for 100 tonnes by 2028.
For Poland, the wording comes through the World Gold Council rather than a Polish central bank document. The Full Year 2025 report says Governor Adam Glapiński indicated an intention to raise Poland's gold reserves to 700 tonnes for “national security reasons,” and that no time frame was given.
Holding gold does not mean a bank will never draw on it. Reuters reported on March 11, 2026, that Governor Glapiński said Poland had a one-off chance to use unrealised profit on its gold reserves to finance military spending, and that the government had expressed “zero interest” in the proposal.
What does the 2026 central bank gold reserves survey show?
Most responding central banks expect official gold reserves to keep rising. In the World Gold Council's 2026 survey, 89% expected global reserves to increase over the next 12 months, and a record 45% expected their own to increase.
The Central Bank Gold Reserves Survey 2026 ran from February 5 to May 19, 2026. Responses are anonymous, and central banks under sanctions were not contacted. Seventy-four percent of respondents expect moderately or significantly lower US dollar holdings within global reserves over the next five years, and, according to the survey's detailed findings, 84% expect gold to hold a higher share of total reserves five years from now.
How much gold does the United States hold?
261,498,926.241 fine troy ounces, about 8,134 tonnes, at September 30, 2026, according to the US Treasury. The total has barely changed since 2022.
The Treasury's Status Report of U.S. Government Gold Reserve lists gold held by the US Mint at Fort Knox, Denver and West Point and by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. It records the gold at a book value of $42.2222 per troy ounce, which gives the September 2026 total a book value of $11,041,059,957.90 in the Treasury's dataset. That book value is a statutory accounting figure, not a market value.
What does central bank gold buying tell an individual buyer?
It describes what central banks have done with their own reserves. The published totals are revised, a large share is an estimate, and the reasons banks give relate to managing national reserves.
For the wider role of physical metal in a household's holdings, see our guide to wealth preservation, and for how metal is held in a vault, our explanation of a depository.
Dormy, Inc. is a Florida precious metals dealer. We source and sell gold, silver, platinum and palladium, including American Eagles, and for metal bought outright we arrange depository storage. We do not give tax, legal or investment advice.
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