Usman Salis
Something big is happening in the world of official reserves, and it's spelled out in gold. Recent data shows that global central banks are now holding more gold than at any point this century - a striking reversal after decades of steady decline. As Barchart flagged, official sector holdings have surged to levels not seen in a generation, putting XAU back at the center of the global monetary conversation.
The historical chart tells a compelling story. Back in the late 1970s and early 1980s, gold made up over 60% of world ex-US reserve holdings. Then came the long decline - central banks diversified, loaded up on dollar-denominated assets, and gold's share fell steadily for two decades. By the early 2000s, it had hit its lowest point in modern history. But around 2015, the trend quietly started reversing. Today, that share has climbed back into the 20% range - the highest this century.
Why Central Banks Are Quietly Stockpiling Gold at Record Pace
This isn't just a statistical curiosity - it reflects a real shift in how reserve managers think about risk. Central banks are pushing gold reserves to their highest level in decades, driven by a mix of geopolitical uncertainty, concerns about dollar dependency, and a broader desire to hold assets that no counterparty can freeze or default on.
Central banks now hold more gold than U.S. Treasuries for the first time since 1996, underscoring how reserve priorities have shifted.
The scale of buying is even larger than official figures suggest. According to The Tradable, central banks have been hiding two-thirds of their gold purchases as XAU demand crosses 1,000 tonnes - meaning the real accumulation is far bigger than what shows up in public reports. And in perhaps the most symbolic data point of all, central banks now hold more gold than US Treasuries for the first time since 1996 - a threshold that would have seemed unthinkable just a decade ago.
Together, these numbers point to a structural reallocation - not a short-term trade. Gold is being reasserted as a core strategic asset in official portfolios, and the trend shows no sign of slowing.
Usman Salis
