European central banks are reassessing where they hold their gold reserves amid rising geopolitical tensions, with the Netherlands relocating 86 tonnes from storage in the United States and Canada to London to improve access to the metal during a potential crisis.

According to information published by Coin Bureau, the relocation reflects a broader reassessment of overseas gold storage. De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) said the transfer, carried out between March and August 2026, was intended to strengthen crisis preparedness and improve the tradability of its reserves.

Overseas storage has long been a feature of European reserve management, dating to the post-war era when keeping gold in New York and London facilitated settlement of international payments. The arrangement also reflected an old adage in central banking that gold reserves should be kept close to the markets where they could actually be used — a logic now being re-examined as geopolitical fault lines shift.

Netherlands Moves 86 Tonnes of Gold to London

The Dutch central bank transferred approximately 86 tonnes from its holdings in New York and Ottawa to London. DNB said gold stored at the Bank of England is more readily tradable and can therefore be deployed more quickly in a crisis. The Bank of England is one of the world's largest gold custodians, and London hosts the world's principal over-the-counter bullion market, which underpins the liquidity advantage DNB cited.

The move changes the distribution of the Netherlands' 612.4-tonne gold stock. London's share increased from 18.1% to 32.1%, while the portions held in New York and Ottawa each fell to 18.5%. DNB said the reallocation was driven by increasing geopolitical unrest and a desire to spread storage risks more evenly across locations. The remainder of the Dutch stock is held domestically at DNB's vaults.

France has also reduced its New York holdings. Banque de France converted 129 tonnes of gold previously held at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York into modern, internationally compliant bars between July 2025 and January 2026, with the upgraded holdings stored in Paris. The central bank said the operation was primarily related to trading efficiency rather than political considerations.

Germany's often-cited 216-tonne transfer, meanwhile, dates to 2016 rather than 2026. The Bundesbank moved 111 tonnes from New York and 105 tonnes from Paris to Frankfurt that year as part of a longer-term storage plan. As of the end of 2025, Germany still held 1,236 tonnes at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Central Banks Maintain Historically High Gold Demand

The relocation trend comes alongside sustained central-bank demand for gold. The World Gold Council reported that central banks purchased 863 tonnes in 2025, below the 1,000-tonne threshold reached in each of the previous three years but still substantially above the 473-tonne annual average recorded from 2010 through 2021. The buying surge that began in 2022 followed the freezing of Russia's foreign exchange reserves that year, an episode that prompted several central banks to publicly cite reserve security as a motivation for holding more gold.

That buying pattern highlights why the location and accessibility of official gold reserves have become increasingly relevant. Gold is being treated not only as a reserve asset but also as a component of broader crisis and diversification strategies.

The Netherlands' latest move therefore raises a specific question for other central banks: whether improving domestic or regional access to bullion will become a more common part of reserve management as geopolitical risks remain elevated.