Poland became the largest gold buyer among the world’s central banks in January-August 2026, increasing its reserves by approximately 98 tonnes, according to an Experts Club analysis based on World Gold Council (WGC) data published on October 6.
In August, global central banks continued actively increasing their gold reserves, purchasing another 39 tonnes on a net basis compared with 23 tonnes a month earlier. However, the ranking of cumulative purchases since the beginning of the year differs noticeably from the results of August alone.
According to the WGC, the largest gold buyers in January-August 2026 included:
Poland – about 98 tonnes
China – about 80 tonnes
Uzbekistan – about 50 tonnes
Kazakhstan – about 36 tonnes
Czech Republic – about 14 tonnes
The National Bank of Poland retained first place thanks to the continuation of its large-scale precious metal accumulation programme. In August alone, the Polish central bank purchased another approximately 7.8 tonnes.
As a result, Poland’s gold holdings approached 648 tonnes, while the National Bank’s strategic target is 700 tonnes.
China ranks second. In August, the People’s Bank of China was the largest buyer in the world, increasing its reserves by as much as 20.2 tonnes.
In January-August, China purchased about 80 tonnes of gold, while its official gold reserves reached approximately 2,387 tonnes. Gold accounts for about 9% of the country’s international reserves.
At the same time, China has continued buying the precious metal for 22 consecutive months, making it one of the most consistent buyers among the world’s largest central banks.
Uzbekistan ranks third, having increased its gold reserves by approximately 50 tonnes since the beginning of the year. In August, the country purchased another approximately 7.8 tonnes. The total volume of gold in Uzbekistan’s reserves reached approximately 439 tonnes, with the precious metal accounting for about 90% of the country’s international reserves.
Kazakhstan ranks fourth, with purchases of approximately 36 tonnes over eight months. In August, the National Bank of Kazakhstan added about 7.4 tonnes, bringing its gold holdings to approximately 377 tonnes. Gold accounts for about 79% of the country’s international reserves.
The Czech Republic rounds out the top five largest buyers. The Czech National Bank purchased 14 tonnes since the beginning of the year, including approximately 1.7 tonnes in August. The country’s total gold reserves reached around 86 tonnes.
Notably, the Czech Republic has been increasing its gold holdings for 42 consecutive months, implementing one of the most consistent reserve expansion programmes among European central banks.
At the same time, Turkey and Russia became the largest gold sellers since the beginning of 2026. Turkey reduced its reserves by approximately 82 tonnes, although in August it returned to purchases and bought about 2.9 tonnes. Russia sold about 56 tonnes in January-August, including approximately 6.2 tonnes in August.
The World Gold Council notes that the continued presence of the same countries among active buyers indicates the long-term nature of gold accumulation policies. Monthly changes in purchase volumes largely reflect the implementation schedules of these programmes, market conditions and the liquidity needs of individual countries.
According to the WGC, in January-August 2026 central banks reported net purchases of approximately 170 tonnes of gold. At the same time, officially recorded changes in reserves do not necessarily reflect total public-sector demand, as some central bank transactions become known with a delay or are not disclosed.
The World Gold Council regularly tracks changes in central banks’ official gold reserves based on data from the International Monetary Fund, national regulators and other official sources. The WGC regards central bank demand as one of the key factors in the global gold market.
Central banks, CHINA, CZECH REPUBLIC, EXPERTS CLUB, GOLD, gold reserves, KAZAKHSTAN, POLAND, UZBEKISTAN, WORLD GOLD COUNCIL
The Central Bank of Russia became the largest gold seller among the world’s central banks in August 2026, reducing its official gold reserves by approximately 6.2 tonnes, according to an Experts Club analysis based on data from the World Gold Council (WGC).
Among the notable gold sellers in August, the WGC highlights:
Russia – about 6.2 tonnes
Jordan – about 3.1 tonnes
Russia continued reducing its gold reserves after selling approximately 6 tonnes in July. In total, in January-August 2026, Russia’s official gold reserves decreased by approximately 56 tonnes.
Following the August sale, the amount of gold in Russia’s reserves stood at about 2,271 tonnes.
Jordan sold about 3.1 tonnes of gold in August. However, unlike Russia, the country remains a net buyer after the first eight months of the year: since the beginning of 2026, its gold reserves have increased by approximately 2 tonnes to 75 tonnes. Gold accounts for about 37% of Jordan’s international reserves.
At the same time, Turkey remains the largest gold seller for January-August, despite switching to purchases in August.
According to the WGC, Turkey has reduced its gold reserves by approximately 82 tonnes since the beginning of the year. The bulk of the sales occurred in the first quarter of 2026. In August, the trend changed, with the Turkish central bank purchasing about 2.9 tonnes of gold.
Russia ranks second among the largest sellers since the beginning of the year, with about 56 tonnes.
Thus, August showed a significant predominance of buyers over sellers: the world’s central banks collectively purchased 39 tonnes of gold on a net basis, compared with 23 tonnes in July.
The World Gold Council notes that the data cover officially reported changes in the reserves of central banks and other official institutions and may differ from the broader estimate of global central bank demand, which takes into account unreported purchases.
Central banks, EXPERTS CLUB, GOLD, gold reserves, JORDAN, RUSSIA, TURKEY, WORLD GOLD COUNCIL
Representatives of the CDU are concerned about the safety of Germany’s gold reserves in storage at the US Federal Reserve, Bild reports. In particular, the publication cites the opinion of Christian Democratic Union (CDU) MP Marco Vandervitz, who, according to Bild, unsuccessfully tried to inspect the gold reserves in 2012, trying to force the Bundesbank to either take on a more active role as custodian or repatriate them to Germany.
MEP Markus Ferber (CDU) also called for more thorough inspections of German gold stored in the United States.
“Bundesbank officials should personally count the bullion and document their results,” Bild quoted him as saying.
Germany has the second largest gold reserves in the world, and keeps 37% of them – about 1,236 metric tons worth 113 billion euros – in the vaults of the Federal Reserve System of New York. These reserves of the precious metal ensure that the Bundesbank will have access to what it can exchange for US dollars (or any other hard currency) if needed.
German politicians are concerned about both Trump’s tariff policy and his attempts to expand his powers and become above the US judicial system.
In February, Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel told Bild: “We have (…) no doubt that in the New York Fed we have a reliable partner for the storage of our foreign exchange reserves.”
The publication points out that concerns about the fate of gold have been exacerbated by “none other than billionaire and senior Trump administration official Elon Musk, who called for a review of the US’s own foreign exchange reserves.”
