EU Brings Its Gold Home From the US – How Sweden Is Affected

Several European central banks are currently moving gold out of the US. This now raises the question of what the Riksbank plans to do with Sweden’s gold reserve.

The Netherlands moves its gold to Europe

Between March and August this year, the Dutch central bank DNB relocated 86 tonnes of gold that had previously been held in the US and Canada.

About 59 tonnes of gold was sold in New York and then bought back in London. A further 27-plus tonnes was physically shipped from North America to the Netherlands.

According to DNB chair Olaf Sleijpen, the aim is to make the gold reserve easier to mobilize in a severe crisis, rather than reflecting any belief that the gold will actually need to be used.

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Other countries have already made the same move

The Netherlands is far from alone in rethinking where its gold should be held. Earlier this year, France sold its last 129 tonnes of gold in New York and bought an equivalent amount in Europe – a deal reported to have generated a capital gain of €11 billion. Germany carried out a similar, much larger relocation between 2013 and 2017.

Here are some of the biggest gold relocations in recent years:

• Germany moved around 674 tonnes of gold from New York and Paris to Frankfurt (2013–2017)
• France sold its last 129 tonnes of gold in New York and bought it back in Europe (2026)
• The Netherlands moved 86 tonnes of gold from the US and Canada to London and Zeist (2026)
• The Dutch central bank now holds 32.1% of its gold in London, more than it holds domestically in the Netherlands

What these moves have in common is a desire to keep gold where it can be sold or mobilized fastest – and London is often cited as the most liquid market for physical gold.

How much of Sweden’s gold is held abroad

Sweden’s gold reserve is also largely held outside the country’s borders. At the end of April 2026, the Riksbank held 125.7 tonnes of gold, worth approximately SEK 172.6 billion.

The gold is held at the Bank of England in London, the Bank of Canada, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and the Swiss central bank, as well as in a smaller vault in Sweden. Nearly half is held in London, while 13.1 tonnes – roughly a tenth of the entire reserve – is held at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

The Riksbank has so far given no indication of a move similar to the Netherlands’. Instead, the spread across several countries is described as a deliberate risk-diversification strategy.

Italy holds the most gold still in the US

If the Netherlands’ decision has drawn particular attention, it’s because eyes are now turning to Italy, which holds one of the world’s largest gold reserves – around 2,452 tonnes in total.

Of that, 1,061 tonnes remain in the US, equivalent to just over 43% of Italy’s entire reserve. This has led several observers to ask whether Italy will be the next country to bring its gold home to Europe.

Why this is becoming so important right now

The trend is rooted in heightened geopolitical uncertainty worldwide. Gold functions as a reserve asset with no counterparty risk – unlike, for example, a bond – which makes it valuable when the financial system comes under pressure.

This is clearly reflected in the statistics: according to the World Gold Council, the world’s central banks have bought an average of around 1,000 tonnes of gold per year over the past four years. That is roughly double the annual average of the preceding decade.

At Tavex, we’re seeing the same pattern as the central banks: interest in physical gold as a safe, independent asset continues to grow, no matter where in the world you are.

How you can invest in physical gold yourself

While central banks move tonnes of gold between vaults, for most private individuals it’s a matter of much smaller amounts. But the principle is the same – owning an asset that doesn’t depend on any other country’s decisions or on a single financial system.

At Tavex, you can buy gold bars and gold coins in a range of sizes, whether you’re just starting to save in gold or already hold physical gold as part of your long-term savings.