10 countries with the largest gold reserves (13 photos)

Governments store thousands of tons of gold bars in banks and vaults around the world. Which countries have the largest gold reserves and where do they store the precious metal?







Strong demand for gold underscores its strategic importance in official reserves, especially in the face of increased geopolitical risks, according to a study by the World Gold Council. UBS experts expect that in 2025 the appetite of global central banks for gold will remain, and the volume of their purchases could reach 900 tons.







Storage at the Fort Knox military base

1. USA: gold reserves - 8133.46 tons, according to the World Gold Council at the end of 2024. The share of the precious metal in the total volume of gold and foreign exchange reserves (GFR) is 74.97%. The United States is the world leader in gold reserves. More than half of the American gold reserves are stored in the vault of the former military base of Fort Knox in Kentucky. In addition, part of the reserves are located in the vault of the Mint in West Point, New York, in the Denver Mint in Colorado and in the vault of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York at 33 Liberty Street in Manhattan.



The main building of the Bundesbank in Frankfurt am Main

2. Germany is the record holder for gold reserves in Europe. Gold reserves are 3351.53 tons. The share of gold in the gold reserves is 74.39%. Previously, most of Germany's gold reserves were in banks in New York (USA), London (UK) and Paris (France). But since 2013, under pressure from public opinion, Germany has begun to return its gold from foreign vaults.

By 2017, the country had returned half of the reserves to the Bundesbank vaults at Wilhelm-Epstein-Strasse 14 in Frankfurt. Currently, 50.6% of Germany's gold is stored there. As of the end of 2023, 36.6% of Germany's gold reserves remained in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (the same one at 33 Liberty Street), and 12.8% in the Bank of England in London. This follows from the Bundesbank's annual report on gold reserves.



Bank of Italy Headquarters, Rome

3. Italy: gold reserves — 2451.84 tons. The share of gold in the gold and foreign exchange reserves is 70.79%. Italian gold is stored mainly in bars. There are 95,493 pieces weighing from 4.2 to 19.7 kg. The Bank of Italy’s gold reserves also include a small share of gold coins — 4.1 tons.

The underground vault in the Palazzo Koch palace on Via Nazionale 91 in Rome contains 44.9% of the bars and coins. Italy has deposited the rest of its reserves in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in Manhattan (43.3%), in the Bern vault in Switzerland (6.1%) and in the Bank of England vault in London (5.8%).



The Bank of France building in Paris

4. France: gold reserves - 2437 tons. The share of gold in the gold reserves is 72.27%. The size of France's gold reserves has remained unchanged since 2009, when France last sold part of its gold. There are no plans to either increase or decrease these reserves in the coming years.

The vault of the Banque de France is located on the lower - minus eighth - floor of the basement of the bank's headquarters in Paris at 31 Croix des Petits Champs. All of France's official gold reserves are stored in Paris.



The People's Bank of China building in Beijing

6. China: gold reserves - 2279.56 tons. The share of gold in the gold and foreign exchange reserves is 5.53%. It is believed that the official gold reserves are stored in Beijing. According to WGS, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) increased its reserves by 5 tons of gold in February 2025, to 2290 tons. The PBOC has been buying gold for the third month in a row; previously, amid a strong rise in global gold prices, the regulator suspended purchases from May 2024.

The central building of the People's Bank of China is located in Beijing at No. 32 Chengfang Road, in the Xiche District.



Headquarters of the Swiss National Bank in Bern

7. Switzerland: gold reserves - 1039.94 tons. The share of gold in gold reserves is 9.59%. The country has a record ratio of gold reserves to the number of residents. Switzerland stores 70% of its gold domestically, 20% at the Bank of England and 10% at the Bank of Canada. The Swiss National Bank has vaults beneath its headquarters in Bern at Bundesplatz 1.



8. India: gold reserves - 876.18 tons. The share of gold in the gold and foreign exchange reserves is 11.35%. India's gold reserves are stored in the form of bars in the vault of the Reserve Bank of India in Nagpur, Maharashtra. The Reserve Bank of India office in Nagpur is located at Dr. Raghavendra Rao Road, Civil Lines, P.B.No.15. By the end of 2024, India increased its reserves to 876.2 tons of gold, although a year earlier the figure was 803.6 tons. This allowed the country to become eighth in gold reserves, pushing Japan into ninth place. Part of the Indian gold is stored in England. In 1991, the country suffered a major crisis that forced the government to use its gold reserves to avoid default. About 8 tons of gold were sent to the Bank of England to obtain loans.

The Reserve Bank of India moved about 100 tons of gold from England to its vaults in 2024 for the first time since early 1991.



The head office of the Bank of Japan in Tokyo

9. Japan: gold reserves - 845.97 tons. The share of gold in the gold reserves is 5.77%. Hishikari in Japan is the only large gold mine in the country, but most of the gold is imported. The main building of the Bank of Japan is located in Tokyo in the Chuo district, 2-1-1 Nihonbashi Hongokucho.



The building of the Central Bank of the Netherlands in Amsterdam

10. Netherlands: gold reserves - 612.45 tons. The share of gold in the gold reserves is 64.93%. The country's gold reserves are stored and managed by the country's central bank, De Nederlandsche Bank. The gold vault at the headquarters of the Central Bank of the Netherlands in Amsterdam, Frederiksplein 61, contains 14 thousand gold bars of 12.5 kg each and a thousand boxes of gold coins. The total weight of the gold is 200,000 kg, and its value is €12 billion (March 2024). This gold is 31% of the total gold reserves of the Dutch Central Bank. Another 31% of the gold reserves are in the vaults of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in Manhattan. The remaining 38% are held by the Bank of England in London and the Bank of Canada in Ottawa.

PS. Speaking of the little Britons... The UK's own gold reserves amounted to only 310.3 tons. The historical maximum was 588.27 tons in the first quarter of 2000. I wonder if the little Britons are going to give up the gold that other countries have given them for safekeeping...