The Czech National Bank has extended its gold buying streak to 29 consecutive months, with market observers reporting the bank’s holdings reached approximately 64 tonnes by July 2025.
The sustained purchasing campaign represents a dramatic reversal from the bank’s previous strategy. Just six years ago, the CNB held only 8 tonnes of gold, marking the lowest reserves in its history.
The central bank has maintained an unusually aggressive acquisition schedule, according to precious metals market analysis.
The Czech central bank has been adding an average of 1-3 tonnes monthly since beginning its aggressive buying program. Recent World Gold Council data shows the bank added gold for 21 consecutive months through November 2024, with year-to-date net purchases totaling nearly 20 tonnes by that point.
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CNB Governor Aleš Michl announced plans to expand gold reserves to approximately 100 tonnes by 2028, a ten-fold increase from the 2019 low. The target would represent the largest gold holdings in the bank’s history.
The central bank cites portfolio diversification as a key motivation. Current gold holdings represent a small fraction of the CNB’s total international reserves, which rank among the world’s largest relative to GDP.
“If we have an infinite investment horizon, it is very important that we have assets that do not move in the same direction,” Michl said in previous statements explaining the strategy.
Read: Eastern Europe Central Banks Lead Global Gold-Buying Spree
The Czech buying spree reflects a broader global trend. Central banks worldwide purchased over 1,000 tonnes of gold annually in recent years, driven by economic uncertainty and desires to reduce dependence on traditional reserve currencies.
Most Czech gold reserves are stored in London for trading liquidity, though some remains in Prague for coin production. The bank occasionally lends gold to generate additional returns.
The dramatic increase reverses decades of gold sales. When the Czech Republic was established in 1993, the CNB inherited 63.3 tonnes of gold but sold most holdings in the late 1990s, retaining just 14 tonnes by 1998.
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