Spain ponders whether it should get its Gold out of the United States

With many countries bringing their gold home, what will Spain do?

Some are calling for the Spanish central bank to follow the lead of the Netherlands and France and repatriate its gold.

The Netherlands recently moved 86 tonnes of gold from North America closer to home in London, citing “increasing geopolitical unrest” and a desire to “strengthen crisis preparedness.”

Meanwhile, France completed a gold repatriation project earlier this year. The Banque de France (BdF) unloaded “non-standard” gold bars of varying purity and size that were stored in New York. The central bank used the proceeds to purchase new gold bars that meet international reserve standards for weight, purity, and certification.

The Bank of Spain holds roughly 289 tonnes of gold. It is the sixth-largest gold reserve among EU countries.

The Spanish central bank refused to disclose how much gold it holds in New York or comment on plans to move it, citing confidentiality.

Sources speaking to El País on the condition of anonymity said most of Spain’s gold is held within Spanish borders and the amount stored in the U.S. is likely small.

Nevertheless, a growing chorus of voices is pushing for repatriation.

Instituto de Estudios Bursátiles (IEB) professor Luis Garvía told El País that bringing the gold home shouldn’t be viewed as a “nationalist” policy.

“Bringing the gold to Spain would not be a sovereigntist gesture; it would be part of the European Union’s strategic autonomy framework.”

As El País notes, the weaponization of the dollar and growing worries that gold could be confiscated have fueled the repatriation movement.

“The main reason is not only the distrust aroused by U.S. President Donald Trump. In 2022, the freezing of Russian assets abroad as part of the sanctions program over the invasion of Ukraine set off alarm bells in nonaligned countries.”

India is another country aggressively repatriating its gold. In the spring of 2024, the Reserve Bank of India brought 100 tonnes of gold home, repatriating it from vaults in the UK. Over the last six months, the Indian central bank has repatriated another 104 tonnes. According to the Economic Times of India, this weaponization of the dollar by the U.S. was one of the key factors, specifically aggressive sanctions levied on Russia after it invaded Ukraine and the freezing of Afghanistan’s reserves by Western powers.

“Those episodes, involving G7 countries restricting access to sovereign assets, have reshaped how central banks think about custody.”

The Netherlands moved some of its gold to London, but as El País reported, that might not be a safe option either. The report pointed out that Venezuela tried to bring home its gold stored in London; however, the UK refused to release the metal, saying it does not recognize Caracas’s monetary authority.

“London is one of the world’s largest gold trading centers, which gives reserves a great deal of liquidity. But in times of rising authoritarianism, that immediacy is no longer so attractive.”

Spain isn’t the only country wrestling with the question of gold storage.

There have also been calls for gold repatriation from German politicians spanning the political spectrum. The Bundesbank brought half of its gold home in 2013, moving 674 tonnes of gold from Paris and New York back to Germany. However, the Bundesbank still stores about one-third of its gold in New York vaults.

Earlier this year, Emanuel Mönch, a leading German economist and former Bundesbank head of research, said it’s “too risky” to keep gold reserves in New York.

“Given the current geopolitical situation, it seems risky to store so much gold in the U.S. In the interest of greater strategic independence from the U.S., the Bundesbank would therefore be well-advised to consider repatriating the gold.”

There have also been loud voices calling for Italian gold repatriation.

According to a World Gold Council survey in 2023, a “substantial share” of central banks expressed concern about potential sanctions after the U.S. and other Western countries froze almost half of Russia’s $650 billion gold and forex reserves in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine. According to the WGC, 68 percent of the banks surveyed said they plan to keep their gold reserves within their country’s borders. This was up from 50 percent in 2020.

One anonymously quoted central bank official told Reuters, “We did have it [gold] held in London… but now we’ve transferred it back to our country to hold as a safe haven asset and to keep it safe.”

This gold repatriation trend underscores the importance of holding physical gold free from counterparty risk.