The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has long held gold reserves on behalf of the U.S. government, foreign governments, other central banks, and official international organizations. Its gold reserves peaked in the early 1970s and have since declined, currently standing at only about half of their peak level.
Data shows that foreign central banks' gold holdings at the Fed in New York decreased by 40 tons in August, while their holdings at the Bank of England increased by 46 tons, indicating a sharp decline in confidence in the Fed's custody arrangements.
Between July last year and January this year, France sold 129 tons of gold stored in New York and replaced it with an equivalent amount of gold purchased in Europe. The Dutch central bank announced last month that it had moved approximately 86 tons of gold reserves previously held in New York and Canada to London to cope with escalating geopolitical instability. The Netherlands repatriated 122.5 tons of gold from New York in 2014, while Germany repatriated 674 tons from New York and Paris between 2013 and 2017. "Increased geopolitical uncertainty is making countries more focused on the jurisdictions where their gold reserves are located, the availability of gold during crises, and their dependence on overseas financial infrastructure," said Gopal, a senior analyst at the World Gold Council.
