Dutch central bank transfers 86 tonnes of gold closer to home

DNB moved some gold reserves from the US and Canada to London, in a move to decrease risk.

De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) has moved about 86 tonnes of gold from North America to London between March and August 2026, to strengthen its crisis preparedness and move the metal to a closer and more geopolitically secure financial hub.

The bank’s move increased London’s share of its reserves to 32.1% from 18.1%.

Holdings in New York and Ottawa each fell to 18.5%, while the share stored in Zeist, Netherlands, remained at 30.8%.

“With this relocation, we have improved the tradability of our gold reserves.

We expect that we will never need to use them, but we do need to strengthen our resilience and preparedness,” DNB Governor Olaf Sleijpen said The DNB said it had 612.4 tonnes of gold, worth €72.2 billion ($80.7 billion) at year-end 2025.

Before the relocation, about 313 tonnes were stored in the US and Canada as part of the bank’s strategy of spreading reserves among several locations.

Gold that is held in the Bank of England must meet modern international trade standards, making it the world’s most easily tradable gold, DNB said.

If the gold was all located in North America, DNB wouldn’t be able to get access to it as quickly or directly as it can in London.

“For the Netherlands, moving gold to London makes its reserves more readily tradable and available in a crisis, and the same applies for the rest of Europe,” Rick Kanda, Managing Director at The Gold Bullion Company , said in a statement.

“If countries want to sell gold fast in a crisis, London is the place to be, making the Bank of England a popular place to store gold.

In fact, the Bank of England is one of the largest custodians of gold in the world, holding 400,000 bars worth more than £200bn.” De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) has moved about 86 tonnes of gold from North America to London between March and August 2026, to strengthen its crisis preparedness and move the metal to a closer and more geopolitically secure financial hub.

The bank’s move increased London’s share of its reserves to 32.1% from 18.1%.

Holdings in New York and Ottawa each fell to 18.5%, while the share stored in Zeist, Netherlands, remained at 30.8%.

“With this relocation, we have improved the tradability of our gold reserves.

We expect that we will never need to use them, but we do need to strengthen our resilience and preparedness,” DNB Governor Olaf Sleijpen said The DNB said it had 612.4 tonnes of gold, worth €72.2 billion ($80.7 billion) at year-end 2025.

Before the relocation, about 313 tonnes were stored in the US and Canada as part of the bank’s strategy of spreading reserves among several locations.

Gold that is held in the Bank of England must meet modern international trade standards, making it the world’s most easily tradable gold, DNB said.

If the gold was all located in North America, DNB wouldn’t be able to get access to it as quickly or directly as it can in London.