The Dutch central bank has shifted a portion of its gold reserves out of the US and Canada and into the UK, as geopolitical tensions prompt central banks to reassess how and where they store their bullion.
De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) said it has transferred approximately 86 tonnes of gold from vaults in New York and Ottawa to London so far this year, citing geopolitical unrest across the globe.
The transfer of bullion — worth about US$12 billion ($16.7 billion) at current prices – took place between March and August, coinciding with a period of heightened geopolitical uncertainty caused by the US-Iran war.
DNB said the move would improve the tradability and accessibility of its gold reserves in the event they are needed during a crisis.
“With this step, we have improved the deployability of the gold reserves. We assume that we will never need to deploy the gold, but it is nevertheless necessary to strengthen our resilience and preparedness,” DNB President Olaf Sleijpen said in a statement on Wednesday.
Why London?
London is home to the world’s largest and most liquid over-the-counter gold market, where hundreds of billions of dollars worth of bullion changes hands each week.
Central banks have long used the Bank of England as a custodian because gold held there can be quickly bought, sold, or lent to raise liquidity.
Bullion stored at the Bank of England must also meet international market standards for weight and purity, making the bars readily interchangeable and easier to trade.
“Gold stored at the Bank of England in London must comply with modern international trading standards and is considered the most easily tradable gold in the world,” DNB said.
“This makes it the quickest for DNB to deploy in a crisis situation.”
The central bank added that keeping a larger portion of its reserves in London “strengthens the function of gold as an anchor of trust”.
Central banks rethink gold storage
The Dutch move comes just months after the French central bank sold bullion reserves held in the US and replaced them with gold stored in Paris, an operation it said was designed to bring its bars into line with international standards.
Central banks have traditionally spread their gold reserves across several countries, balancing the security of domestic storage with the ability to mobilise bullion quickly in major financial centres.
However, growing geopolitical tensions are prompting more reserve managers to reconsider where their bullion is stored. A recent central bank survey found a growing proportion are considering diversifying or repatriating their holdings.
It is not the first time the Netherlands has reduced its gold holdings in the US.
In 2014, DNB reduced the proportion of its reserves held in New York from 51% and repatriated part of the bullion to the Netherlands.
Netherlands’ gold reallocated
According to the DNB, it held 612.4 tonnes of gold worth €72.2 billion at the end of 2025.
Before the latest transfer, 31.3% of that gold was held in New York and 19.7% in Ottawa.
Following the relocation, both the US and Canada account for 18.5% of the Netherlands’ total gold reserves.
Meanwhile, 30.8% remains at DNB’s cash centre in Zeist, southeast of Amsterdam.
Write to Jackson Chen at Mining.com.au
Images: De Nederlandsche Bank
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