Gold reserves in Russian banks have collapsed
OREANDA-NEWS At the end of 2024, the total gold reserves in Russian banks decreased by half compared to the figure recorded in the fall of 2023, and fell below the 40-ton mark. This is reported by RBC with reference to data from the Central Bank (CB).
As of January 1, 2025, there were a total of 325.4 billion rubles in accounts
that reflect balances in precious metals and stones. Taking into account the
prices of refined gold, a total of 38.1 tons of precious metal were stored in
Russian banks as of the same reporting date. In 12 months, according to the
regulator, reserves on accounts decreased by 23.6 percent. In physical terms,
the decline turned out to be even more significant and amounted to 46.4
percent, or more than 33 tons.
The three-year maximum was recorded in the fall of 2023. The result achieved by
the beginning of 2025 turned out to be the lowest since July 2022. At that
time, in the midst of sanctions pressure from Western countries, Russian credit
institutions actively increased the volume of gold exports, selling precious
metals in the interests of gold miners and refineries. After that, gold
reserves in the accounts began to gradually recover against the background of
increased production and increased trade in precious metals on both the
domestic and foreign markets.
VTB's first deputy chairman Dmitry Pyanov attributed the current reduction,
among other things, to a record increase in the key interest rate. After a long
period of increase and spread in the cost of attracting liabilities (the rates
on them are higher than the key one), it has become more profitable for banks
to buy and sell gold to their customers faster. However, due to the specifics of
the disclosure of financial statements (data are published on the reporting
date, without monthly turnover), he said, an "optical" distortion is
created. "It seems that there is less gold, but this is not the
case," concluded Pyanov.
Earlier, the RIA Novosti news agency, citing data from the World Gold Council,
reported that the Russian Central Bank bought about three tons of gold last
year. These volumes, experts noted, were mainly used for coinage. The reserves
of monetary gold in the international reserves of the Russian Federation for
the reporting period remained at the level of 2,332.76 tons. At the same time,
Russians' demand for the precious metal increased markedly in 2024. For the
first time in history, Russian citizens entered the top five most active gold
buyers in 12 months, acquiring a total of 75.6 tons.
Source: https://www.oreanda-news.com