Central banks continue to maintain a positive outlook on gold reserves, with 89% of respondents expecting global central bank gold holdings to increase over the next 12 months, according to the Central Bank Gold Reserves Survey 2026 conducted by the World Gold Council in partnership with YouGov. The survey, conducted between 5 February and 19 May 2026, received a record 76 responses from central banks worldwide. It found that 45% of respondents expect their own institutions to increase gold reserves over the coming year, while most of the remaining respondents anticipate no change.

According to the report, gold’s performance during periods of crisis, its role as a portfolio diversifier and its function as a long-term store of value and inflation hedge remain the primary reasons central banks continue to hold the metal. Gold’s role as a geopolitical risk hedge and as part of reserve diversification policies also featured among the leading motivations for increasing allocations.

The survey also indicates changing expectations for reserve composition. Around 74% of respondents expect the share of US dollar holdings in global reserves to decline over the next five years, while most believe gold’s share will increase. Expectations for the euro and Chinese renminbi largely remain unchanged. When asked how future purchases would be funded, half of respondents indicated they would use domestic purchase programmes in local currency, while 38% said they would finance acquisitions through the sale of existing reserve assets.

On storage practices, the Bank of England remained the preferred vaulting location for 57% of respondents, followed by domestic storage at 49%. The survey also recorded increased diversification of storage arrangements, with 9% reporting higher domestic storage and 10% expanding overseas storage locations during the past 12 months.

The report notes that central banks have accumulated an average of 1,000 tonnes of gold annually over the past four years, significantly above the 500-tonne annual average recorded during the preceding decade. It concludes that continued geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty is reinforcing gold’s role as a strategic reserve asset for central banks.