More than 27 tonnes was physically transported from the US and Canada to the Netherlands, while a similar amount of suitable gold was moved from Zeist to London.
European central banks are repositioning billions of dollars' worth of gold as geopolitical tensions rise and questions grow over the reliability of the US as a home for countries' ultimate crisis reserves.
The latest move comes from the Netherlands, whose central bank has shifted about 86 tonnes of gold away from North America, reducing the proportion of its reserves held in New York and Ottawa and substantially increasing its holdings in London.
De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) said on Wednesday that the move was intended to strengthen its preparedness for severe crises amid “increasing geopolitical unrest”. The Netherlands has total gold reserves of 612.4 tonnes, valued at €72.2 billion at the end of last year.
Between March and August, the Netherlands shifted gold from around 313 tonnes held in the US and Canada. New York's share of Dutch reserves fell from 31.3% to 18.5%, while Ottawa's declined from 19.7% to 18.5%.
