France’s central bank has sold off the last of the gold it held in the United States Federal Reserve and replaced it with higher quality bars in Paris, taking advantage of rising prices to make nearly €13 billion as it upgrades its holdings.
The Banque de France (BdF) announced last week that it generated a capital gain of €12.8 billion after upgrading 129 tonnes of gold – about 5 percent of France's total reserves – between July 2025 and January 2026.
The gold was the last of the French reserves held in New York. It was replaced with the equivalent amount bought in Europe and held in Paris.
The BdF has been gradually replacing older, non‑standard gold with bars that meet modern international standards since 2005. It moved the majority of its gold reserves out of the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England between 1963 and 1966.
Rather than refining and transporting the gold that remained in the US, the bank opted to sell it and purchase new, compliant bullion on the European market.
Through 26 transactions, the BdF made a significant profit, capitalising on record-high gold prices during the period.
France’s total gold reserves of about 2,437 tonnes – the fourth-largest in the world – are now all in Paris. This includes 134 tonnes of older bars and coins, which the bank intends to bring up to standard by 2028.
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Economic decision
In Germany, which holds the world's second-largest gold reserves, some economists have called on the government to withdraw its gold from the US, citing concerns about "unpredictable" policies under President Donald Trump.
The Bundesbank, Germany's federal bank, holds about 1,236 tonnes of gold in the US, or about 37 percent of its total.
"Trump is unpredictable and he does everything to generate revenue. That’s why our gold is no longer safe in the Fed’s vaults," said Michael Jäger, head of both the Association of German Taxpayers and the European Taxpayers Association.
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BdF governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau insisted that the decision to move France’s gold out of the US was not politically motivated.
Instead, it was based on the fact that higher-standard gold is traded on the European market, and buying new gold was easier than refining the existing stock.
The exceptional capital gains contributed to the bank's net profit of €8.1 billion for 2025, following a net loss of €7.7 billion the previous year.
(with Reuters)
